Lost Love
by pikagurl23
Summary: Sequel to 'The Fight For Love' Two years after the battle between Ash and Aki, evil has returned and Misty comes to the startling revelation that she could lose much more than just a battle...it could also mean the end of the 'chosen one'...forever.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Don't own pokemon!  
  
A/N: So, I'm finally getting started on one of my many sequels. Believe me, this is only a small portion of what's to come in the future. Anyway, I hope you like it, but I do recommend that you read 'The Fight for Love' before beginning this one. Also, thank you again to everyone who reviewed 'Where the Heart Is.' I really appreciated it!  
  
Ash: 18  
  
Misty: 19  
  
Brock: 20  
  
Lost Love  
  
Chapter 1  
  
"Ash, can you get the mail for me please?" screamed Mrs. Ketchum, as her exuberant voice rang throughout the whole Ketchum residence.  
  
"Sure thing, Mom," Ash answered back as he ran down the stairs and out the front door.  
  
Two years…that's how long it had been since the battle between Aki and Ash…the battle between good and evil. It had been, for the most part, fairly quiet. They hadn't heard anything from Hikara or Ash's father for that matter. Since that time, Ash had told his mother everything, from the encounter with Aki to the reunion with his father. The whole explanation had taken Mrs. Ketchum off guard. Even though she had come to expect strange things from her son, this had to be one of the most outrageous. After a few tears were shed, Ash continued to explain what had happened. Since then, life had been pretty normal.  
  
As Ash made his way to the mailbox, his mind started to wander about how perfect life was. It seemed as if everything was going his way and that nothing could spoil his good mood.  
  
He opened the mailbox to find several envelopes stacked in a neat pile. Upon pulling the stack out, he started to examine each envelope.  
  
"Bill…bill…bill…hmm…what's this?" Ash asked himself.  
  
A white envelope with an official looking purple stamp on it caught Ash's eye, especially since it had his name on it. He looked at the return address and found that it was from the Pokemon League.  
  
'The Pokemon League? What would they send me?' thought Ash as he turned the envelope over, eager to open it.  
  
"Ash!" yelled a voice from inside the house.  
  
"Yeah, Mist!" Ash yelled back, still staring at the envelope.  
  
"Where are you?" 19 year-old Misty asked as she walked outside of the house, "There you are. Breakfast is ready," she announced as she came up next to him.  
  
"I'll be right there," he answered as he stuffed the envelope in his pocket.  
  
"What's that you got there?" she asked, staring over his shoulder.  
  
"It's nothing," he smiled. He then gave her a small reassuring kiss on the cheek and a tight hug. "Come on. Let's get something to eat."  
  
"All right," she sighed, letting herself fall into his warm embrace.  
  
The couple walked inside, hand in hand, and then headed towards the kitchen where Brock, Mrs. Ketchum, Pikachu, and Togepi were waiting. Ash set the stack of mail on the countertop and seated himself next to Misty at the table.  
  
"Here you go guys, Brock's breakfast special," announced Brock as he set the food onto the table.  
  
"Thanks Brock. This looks great!" exclaimed Misty as she started to feed Togepi, "How does that taste Togepi?"  
  
"Choki!" it squealed as it hungrily ate the food that was placed before it.  
  
"Thank you for making breakfast Brock," smiled Mrs. Ketchum as she placed some food onto her plate.  
  
"Oh, it was no problem Mrs. Ketchum. Just glad to be of some assistance," smiled Brock as he took his seat next to her.  
  
All the while, Ash had been staring at his plate thinking about his letter from the Pokemon League.  
  
'I wonder what's in it, maybe another tournament. I haven't heard anything from Professor Oak though. Maybe it's a special tournament that you can only get in with an acceptance letter,' thought Ash.  
  
"Ash, what's wrong?" asked Misty upon noticing the blank look on his face.  
  
"Huh?" Ash blinked as he was shaken out of his reverie. He looked around the table and saw that everyone was staring at him. "What?"  
  
"Well, it's just that you've been staring off into space for the past five minutes," commented Brock, "What's the matter?"  
  
"It's nothing. Don't worry about it," Ash reassured as he started to pick at his food with his fork.  
  
"Ash, something's always on your mind when you stare blankly like that," smiled Misty as she nudged him lightly.  
  
"Pika!" it agreed as it nodded its head.  
  
"Really guys, I'm fine. There's nothing to worry about," smiled Ash as he dug into his food.  
  
Misty exchanged a look of uncertainty with Brock who, in turn, gave her the same look. They both knew how Ash was when he was thinking of something important. It was only a matter of time before he blurted out his little secret to the two of them. In the meantime, they would just have to be patient, realizing that this was Ash they were talking about after all.  
  
After breakfast, Ash ran upstairs to his room and shut the door. He eagerly took the letter from out of his pocket and ripped the envelope open. Inside was an official looking letter about a paragraph in length. Ash began to read the letter aloud.  
  
"'You have been cordially invited to participate in this year's confidential Pokemon League sponsored tournament at the famous Emerald Coliseum. It will be approximately one month long starting two weeks from the date on the top of this letter. We encourage you to participate since your records in past tournaments have proved you worthy. Unfortunately, family and/or friends will not be allowed to accompany you to the tournament. We thank you for your co-operation and hope you partake in this event. Signed, the Pokemon League…P.S. If you wish to participate, then you must send back your reply to the return address by no later than Saturday,'" Ash finished as he continued to stare at the letter.  
  
Truthfully, he was completely psyched that the League had noticed his record and based his acceptance on that, but on the other hand, he wouldn't be able to bring Misty or Brock with him. He never faced a tournament without them by his side. They were his coaches and mentors. How could he go without them?  
  
Upon hearing footsteps coming up the stairs, Ash quickly stuffed the letter back into its envelope and threw it into his already packed desk drawer. The letter was half sticking out when Ash closed the drawer, thinking that no one would go around his things.   
  
"Hey, are you in here?" asked Misty as she gently pushed the door open.  
  
"Yeah, right here," announced Ash calmly as he stared out of his window, his mind elsewhere.  
  
"Your mom wants you to help her with the dishes," said Misty as she came into the room that she and Ash were now sharing.  
  
"The dishes…oh, right…sure thing…" he trailed off as he continued to stare outside.  
  
With a raised brow to Ash's peculiar behavior, Misty began to approach him. She knew there was something on Ash's mind, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. He was fine this morning before he went to pick up…the mail.  
  
"Ash, what's wrong?" she asked.  
  
"Nothing's wrong. What makes you think anything is wrong?" he asked nonchalantly as he finally directed his gaze towards hers.  
  
"Well, it's just that…" She thought about what she was going to say, but then quickly dismissed it. "Never mind."  
  
"Okay," he replied as he shrugged it off and hopped off of his bed. Before leaving his room to do his mother's request, he gave her a light kiss on the lips. "Don't worry about me. I'm fine."  
  
She sighed and nodded in response to his statement and followed his lead downstairs into the kitchen. Once downstairs, Ash headed towards the kitchen to find that his mom had already started.  
  
"Here mom, let me help with that," said Ash as he grabbed a towel from off of the towel rack and started to dry the dishes.  
  
"Thank you, sweetie," smiled Mrs. Ketchum as she continued to wash the dirty dishes.  
  
All the while, Ash's mind kept wandering to the letter back in his desk drawer. This tournament sounded like it was a big event, and he had been hand picked by the Pokemon League. He sorted out the pros and cons in his head and thought that that might give him his decision, but it was useless. On the one side, he had the chance to compete in a secret tournament that only the most skilled competed in, while also gaining valuable experience and practice for future reference. On the other hand, he had to leave Misty and Brock behind, and without their coaching and encouragement, would he even stand a chance?  
  
"Ash, honey, you've been drying that plate for the past five minutes. I think it's dry," announced his mother, as she gave him an odd look.  
  
"Huh? Oh," said Ash as he realized what he had been doing. He put the plate down embarrassedly and continued on to the next plate.  
  
Misty, however, was watching Ash all the while, getting more and more concerned about his odd behavior.  
  
'What aren't you telling me, Ash?' she thought as she continued to watch her clumsy boyfriend.  
  
Meanwhile, Brock had been up and around, cleaning up the rest of the house. He had been upstairs for the duration of the time and began to sweep around Ash's room.  
  
"That kid is so unorganized," muttered Brock to himself as he vacuumed through the dump that was Ash's room.  
  
He started dusting around his desktop and put all of his papers and books in a neat pile. He then noticed a mangled looking envelope half sticking out of one of his drawers.  
  
"He can't even put his things away," sighed Brock as he took out the envelope and started organizing the inside of the drawer.  
  
Upon finishing the drawer, he started to place the envelope back in its respective spot when the letter inside fell to the floor. Brock bent over and picked up the letter and noticed the purple Pokemon League stamp on it.  
  
'The Pokemon League? What would they want with Ash?' thought Brock as he examined the letter more closely.  
  
Upon finishing the letter, he placed it back into its envelope and put it into Ash's drawer.   
  
"Why didn't he tell us about this?" he wondered.  
  
After second thought, Brock pulled the letter back out and had decided to ask Ash himself about it. He placed the envelope in his pocket and headed downstairs in search of Ash. He reached the bottom of the stairs and spotted Ash on the couch with Pikachu watching television.  
  
"Ash, do you have a second?" asked Brock.  
  
"Yeah, sure," answered Ash as he got up off of the couch and headed towards the staircase.  
  
"What's up?" he asked as he reached Brock.  
  
Brock motioned for Ash to follow him upstairs and into his room. Upon reaching the room, Brock closed the door and turned to face his long time friend.  
  
"What's this all about Brock?" asked Ash, dumbfounded as to why his friend looked so urgent.  
  
Brock pulled the envelope from out of his pocket and showed it to Ash, who, in turn, instantly recognized it.  
  
"I know what you're thinking. I had no right to go through your personal stuff and I'm sorry, but…" Before Brock could finish, Ash interrupted him.  
  
"I'm not going Brock," answered Ash simply.  
  
"Huh? Why not?" asked Brock, a perplexed look on his face.  
  
"Because I don't want to leave you guys behind. You've always been there for me in the past and I just don't want to do this without you guys. It just doesn't feel right to me," stated Ash with a slight smile on his face.  
  
"You're sure that's what you want to do?" asked Brock one last time.  
  
"Don't worry about it Brock. It'll be fine," reassured Ash as he patted his friend on the shoulder.  
  
"Does Misty know about this?" asked Brock setting the envelope back on Ash's desk.  
  
"Um…not yet she doesn't. I'll get to it later," shrugged Ash as he gave his friend an uncertain look.  
  
Brock sighed aloud and sat down on Ash's bed.   
  
"I think this would be a good opportunity for you to strengthen your skills though," commented Brock as he looked out the window.  
  
"Yeah, I know, but there'll be other tournaments. Don't worry so much Brock," laughed Ash as he opened the door to his room, "You act like my mom sometimes."  
  
"I think I cook better than her too," commented Brock as he followed his friend out of the room.   
  
"Hey, watch it," laughed Ash as their voices trailed off down the hallway…  
  
***  
  
"So, we meet again," exclaimed a deep male voice from the darkness.  
  
"Who's there?" Misty asked, staring blankly into the abyss.  
  
"It's only been two years and you've already forgotten us," said a second female voice.   
  
Misty gasped at the realization that had just overcome her. The two voices that were calling out to her…it couldn't be?  
  
Just then two forms appeared. The first figure was draped in a dark hooded cloak. His face was covered and his head was facing down. The second figure, a female, wore a black hooded cape, black boots, and a completely black outfit.  
  
"Now do you recognize us?" asked the male.  
  
Misty just shook her head in disbelief and took in a sharp breath.  
  
"It can't be," she gasped as she took a few steps backwards, "It just can't be."  
  
"You had better believe it," said the young caped girl.  
  
"We killed you two years ago. You shouldn't be here," breathed Misty as darkness started to cloud her mind and her vision.  
  
"Heed my warning. The chosen one will endure an unparallel amount of suffering, his downfall is imminent," warned the cloaked man.  
  
"Keep those that you cherish close to you or you will regret it," announced the female as the darkness started to collapse around Misty.  
  
She screamed in hopes that someone would hear her, but no one came and no one would come because the darkness was keeping all contact away from her…and she could do nothing to prevent it…  
  
***  
  
Just then, Misty's eyes flashed open and she bolted upward. Ash and Brock were standing above her. She looked around at her surroundings and found that she was back in the Ketchum's living room on the couch where she had fallen asleep.  
  
"Mist, what happened? You were screaming," said Ash as he kneeled next to her and gave her a hug.  
  
Misty just shook her head, unable to speak. Her mind was reeling, but she couldn't stop herself from focusing on two things.  
  
Aki and Marissa…  
  
A/N: One down many, many, many, many more to go. *sigh* the life of a fanfic writer…Anyhoo, send me a review, comment, anything! Thanks! 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Don't own Pokemon!

A/N: Okay, okay, so I haven't updated this in like months, so sorry about that. Been busy, busy, busy, but I'm sure you all don't want to hear about that. Anyway, hear is the long awaited chapter 2. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

'What had happened down there?' thought Misty to herself as she laid, face-up, on Ash's bed.

Was it really just a bad dream, or was there something more? Misty wasn't sure what to think. Two years ago had seemed like such a long time, but it was all coming back to her now. Everything, every little detail about their struggles two years ago was beginning to resurface. She saw it with her own eyes. Both Aki and Marissa had been vanquished into the darkness, never to return, or so she thought. Hikara and Ash's father would have warned them if something was going to happen, right? And what about Li and Sakura? Were they connected as well?

Suddenly, broken out of her daydream, the door creaked open slightly. Misty, a bit startled, turned her head to see Brock enter the room.

"Hey, I need to talk to you. It's important," he announced.

"Can't it wait?" She asked, sighing to herself.

Brock, unsure, shook his head and gave her a pleading look. Misty, in turn, just sighed and smiled as she motioned for him to close the door.

"Well?"

"Misty, it's about Ash," Brock started, unsure if what he was about to say was an intrusion on Ash's privacy.

"What about Ash?" Misty asked, wondering if she would finally find out what had been bothering him.

Clearing his throat, Brock pulled the crumpled up envelope out of his pocket and threw it into Misty's open hands.

"Read it," he said simply.

Giving him a questioningly look, Misty did as she was told and began to scroll down the letter. Upon finishing the letter, Misty looked up at Brock, confusion written all over her face.

"What's the problem? Why doesn't he just participate? It'll be a good practice for him," stated Misty.

"I don't think he wants to go," he said, uncertain.

"Brock, it's not like Ash to just skip a tournament, especially if he's been 'cordially invited,' shrugged Misty as she looked at the letter, "Why wouldn't he want to do this?"

Brock sighed and sat on the chair opposite Misty.

"It's all because of you," he said, shaking his head.

"Excuse me?"

"Read the fine print," he countered.

Shifting her eyes back to the letter, Misty proceeded to search for the print that she had missed. Finding it at the very bottom, she bit her lip.

"Oh…" he sighed, "We wouldn't be able to go with him?" she asked, her tone changing.

Brock shook his head in response and sighed, "Nope, doesn't seem like it."

"Well, he'd have to go by himself, right?" she asked.

"Yeah, that's what they want," sighed Brock.

Misty stared at the letter and read it once again.

'I wonder if this really is a letter from the Pokemon League,' Misty thought, referring to the dream she had had only moments before.

Flipping the envelope over, she examined the purple stamp imprinted on the front and stared at the neat handwriting showing Ash's home address.

"Hey Brock," Misty called, "This is the official Pokemon League stamp, right?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it is, why?" he asked looking at the envelope.

"No reason," Misty answered nonchalantly.

'Maybe it isn't a trap,' she thought.

"Well, what are you going to do?" asked Brock, breaking Misty out of her thoughts.

Taking a deep breath and folding the letter up into its envelope, Misty stood up. She smiled at Brock and stuffed the envelope into her back pocket.

"I'll try talking to him about it later," she smiled.

Brock nodded and headed for the door, "Good idea, he always listens to you," he said, exiting the room.

Lying back down on the bed, Misty started to think about Ash, the tournament, and Aki and Marissa.

'Is it all a trap? How can I be sure? Hikara would have warned us by now, wouldn't she? What am I supposed to do now?' she thought, her gaze shifting to the nearby window.

Folding her arms underneath her chin, she started to talk to herself.

"I need some kind of a sign, anything that'll tell me if I should let him go or not," sighed Misty.

"Let who go where?" came a voice from the doorway.

Misty quickly turned around, startled by the sudden voice. She smiled when she saw Ash's smiling face gleaming back at her. The glow that he spread throughout everyone he knew was what Misty loved most about him. He was special in every way possible, and from just one look, he made her want to melt on the spot.

"Ever hear of knocking?" quipped Misty, lying back on her side.

"This is my room, remember?" smiled Ash as he sat beside her and put a hand on her back.

"Yeah, well it's still rude," Misty argued, cocking her head to the side.

"Well, excuse me," he smiled, planting a kiss on her lips.

Although they had done it many times before, the kisses that they bestowed upon each other were always uplifting. It was warm, relaxing, and passionate, something that many couples their age had lost when it came to a good, solid relationship.

Breaking away from the kiss, Misty smiled up at him.

"What are you doing up here?" she asked.

"Just checking up on you, is everything okay?" he asked, caressing her cheek.

"Yeah, I think so," she said, looking down at the bed.

After a moment of silence, Ash spoke up once more.

"So, who was it you were talking about earlier, before I so rudely interrupted you," smiled Ash.

Misty stared up at the ceiling thoughtfully and took in a deep breath.

"Ash, Brock told me about the tournament," she said, waiting for his response.

"He did?" he asked.

With a nod, Misty sat up in her bed and stared up at him. To her, he looked fine, as if he didn't mind the fact that she knew.

"Are you mad?"

Ash laughed at her, "Of course not. I guess I should know better than to keep secrets from you, especially in this household."

Misty smiled back at him, relieved that he wasn't mad about his privacy being broken. Ash really wasn't one to get upset, he was more of the type that would talk through situations instead of pointing fingers.

"I don't think I'm going to go," he said suddenly.

"Huh?" Misty had been so deep in thought, she had almost forgotten what they were talking about.

"The tournament, I mean. There'll be others to participate in," he shrugged, lying down on the bed next to her.

"But, this is a great opportunity for you to heighten your skills and prepare you for the future," Misty argued.

"I take it you want me to go," sighed Ash.

Misty nodded her head vigorously, not knowing what Ash was so worried about. I mean, sure, it would be the first time he had ever competed without her or Brock by his side, but they really didn't do anything. They just stood on the sidelines, cheering him on when he had won a great match, but, she realized, they were also there to console him after defeat. She guessed the main reason for Ash's sudden behavior was because they were all the best of friends and that was something that he had to leave behind for the time being.

Although Misty wanted Ash to participate, something was still tugging at her mind. The thought of Aki and Marissa being behind this whole thing sickened her. She wouldn't know for sure until it was too late, and she didn't want to wait for something to happen, but, of course, she refrained from telling Ash her worries.

Sensing Misty's uneasiness, Ash rubbed her back comfortingly.

"What's wrong?" he asked suddenly.

"It's nothing," she sighed, staring out the window.

"You're a bad liar," he smiled.

"And what makes you think I'm lying?" she argued.

"Just intuition," he answered back, "Come on Mist, you know you can tell me anything. I'm not like Brock, I won't go telling the whole world about your problems," he smiled.

Giving into his words, Misty began to tell him of her worries and her dream.

"I'm scared that Aki and Marissa might be behind this," she said gravely.

"Aki and Marissa?" said Ash, surprised by her response.

That definitely wasn't what he was expecting to hear. What had brought this on? Their names hadn't been mentioned since the day they were sent into exile. She was hiding something, Ash knew, and he just had to know what it was.

"What about them? What do you know Misty?" he asked urgently.

"Nothing," she lied, "It's just that, I don't know, I guess I'm just being paranoid."

"No, Misty, if there's something I need to know, please, you have to tell me," said Ash, gripping onto Misty's shoulders, forcing her to look at him.

Sighing, Misty's thoughts drifted back to the dream she had had only about an hour ago. She wasn't sure whether she should tell Ash or not. She wasn't even sure if it meant something or if it was just a bad dream from the traumatic experiences of two years ago. But, knowing that Ash would not let the subject drop, she gave in, telling him of her dream.

"I had a dream earlier," she started, "Aki and Marissa were speaking to me, everything was dark, and I was the only one there, I tried yelling for you and Brock, but nothing happened," she finished, as she thought about the part of the dream she had left out, the part about Ash's downfall. She didn't want to tell Ash what Aki had said because, knowing Ash, he would be more concerned for her safety rather than his own.

Ash inhaled deeply and put his hand under his chin for support.

Was it for real or was it just a nightmare? Ash wasn't sure what to think, but remembering what Hikara had told him before, he straightened up a bit.

"I don't know if they would have access to this world anymore. I mean, we sent them into that vortex," he said, pulling his sleeve up to reveal the mark that was left by the light that had obliterated Aki and Marissa. Misty also lifted her sleeve up to look at her mark. Although, there was no definite shape to the marks, both Ash and Misty knew that each one stood for something. To Ash, his mark looked like a flame and, to Misty, hers looked like a water droplet. It was no coincidence that her symbol was water; she knew there was some kind of a connection.

"Do you think they've returned?" Misty asked after a long silence.

"I'm sure everything will be okay," he reassured, not really believing his own words, "Fate has a way of handling these types of situations."

Misty nodded and sighed once more, hoping that Ash was right. Just then, her mind suddenly remembered the tournament.

"Well, what about the tournament?" she asked suddenly.

Being so caught up in their conversation about Aki and Marissa, Ash had completely forgotten their original conversation.

"Misty, I don't think…" he started, but was cut off by Misty.

"No Ash, I think this will be good for you. You'll be more prepared if you go alone. Me and Brock won't be here forever you know," she said.

That last part shocked Ash. Of course they would be together forever, they were all the best of friends and nothing would be able to tear them apart.

'Maybe,' thought Ash, 'She's still just scared about that dream.'

"Well," sighed Ash.

"Please Ash, do this for me," begged Misty.

Sighing, Ash gave into her pleads and nodded his head. Misty, in turn, smiled and jumped into his open arms.

"You'll do great, I know you will," she exclaimed.

"I'll miss you," he said, kissing her forehead.

"I'll miss you too," she replied, letting the stress from earlier melt away, "You'll do just fine by yourself."

"You really think so?"

"I know so," she answered.

"All right then!" smiled Ash, now psyched about the upcoming tournament.

"Here, you better mail this in before you do anything," she said, pulling the envelope out of her pocket.

Ash pulled the letter out of the envelope and checked the box labeled 'yes,' sealed it inside a new envelope, and threw a stamp on it. Running out of the room, Misty trailing, he carried the envelope to the mailbox and then quickly ran back inside to tell his mom and Brock.

Upon telling and explaining the whole situation to both Brock and his mother, Brock gave Misty a look that said 'I knew you'd be able to convince him.' Misty, in turn, gave him an all knowing look and nodded. Pikachu, also happy to be back in action, rushed into its master's arms.

"Pikachu!" it exclaimed.

"Looks like you're just as excited as I am," smiled Ash.

The little mouse pokemon nodded and smiled.

"Well, Ash, you had better get packing if you're going to leave tomorrow," smiled his mother.

"Tomorrow?" asked Ash, his face falling.

"Yeah, it's quite a hike to the Emerald Coliseum. You'll need at least one week, maybe two to get there," explained Brock.

"That's kind of soon," said Ash.

"Yeah, well, you don't want to be late, do you?" asked Misty, "Come on, I'll help you pack," she finished, pulling Ash up the stairs.

"Wait; hold on," exclaimed Ash, "Actually, I'll do that later tonight. I have something to take care of first," he said, running out the door, Pikachu trailing him.

Bewildered, Misty and Brock watched as he ran off in the direction of the downtown Pallet.

"Hmm…I know it's around here somewhere," pondered Ash as he scanned the multitude of shops that surrounded him.

Just then, a bright gold sign caught Ash's eye. The sign was framed in gold and the writing was written in silver cursive. The store's sign read 'Silver Maiden.' Excitedly, Ash rushed in the store, Pikachu hot on his trail, wondering what his master was doing in such a feminine looking store. Once inside Ash scanned the display cases for the perfect gift. The store had everything; gold, silver, white gold, platinum, diamonds, anything you could think of. The bright lights above made the diamonds in the cases shimmer brilliantly, Ash noticed, as he sat down on one of the burgundy seats that were situated in front of one of the cases. Pikachu hopped onto the chair to get a better look and peered into the case. Inside, he saw a multitude of gold trinkets and jewelry.

"Pikachu?"

"That's the one, Pikachu," said Ash as he pointed out on of the pieces.

Pikachu took another look and followed Ash's outstretched finger. Lying on one of the centerpieces was a tiny white gold locket. It was in the shape of a heart with a single diamond in the middle that shimmered.

"It's the only place in town that sells lockets in anything other than gold," said Ash as he stared at the piece of jewelry.

"Pikachu pi?"

"Yeah, it's for her. I'll give it to her tomorrow before I leave," he sighed, "I was planning on getting it for her birthday, but I guess it won't hurt if I'm a little early this year."

Pikachu nodded its head in approval, obviously surprised that its master was thinking ahead for once.

"Excuse me sir, may I help you with something."

Ash looked up to see one of the employees smiling down on him. Despite Ash's young appearance, she sounded more than happy to accommodate him.

"Yes, may I see that piece over there please," he replied, pointing to the locket.

"Of course," she smiled, reaching in the case to pull the locket out into open view, "You have good taste. That's one of my favorite pieces."

She placed a velvet looking mat on the display and placed the locket atop it. Ash lifted it up and examined it awhile.

"This is a white gold piece, garnished with a princess cut diamond, and a sixteen inch white gold chain," she explained, sounding as if she had memorized it.

"What do you think, Pikachu?" smiled Ash as he showed Pikachu the piece.

"Cha…" it marveled, stunned by its beauty.

"Do you think she'll like it?" asked Ash.

Pikachu nodded its head and put a thumb up, obviously pleased with its master's decision.

"It's perfect," he smiled, "Can I take this please?"

"Certainly," smiled the woman, "Would you like me to wrap it for you?"

"No thank you. I can take care of that," replied Ash.

"Pika?"

"Don't worry Pikachu, I have an idea for the wrapping. It's all taken care of," smiled Ash as he handed his credit card over to the sales person, "This'll definitely put a dent in my account, but it's worth it."

"Pika!"

Upon returning home, Ash scanned the inside of the living room from his porch outside to see if Misty was around. He saw her sitting on the couch with Brock and his mother, watching a sitcom on TV.

"Okay Pikachu, here's the plan," explained Ash, "I'll keep them distracted while you rush upstairs and put the necklace in my safe. Here's the key, I don't want Brock to accidentally find it like he found the letter," laughed Ash, handing Pikachu both the present and the key.

Pikahcu nodded in response as Ash slowly opened the door. He peered inside as Misty turned her head to see who had come. She greeted him with a smile and proceeded to get off of the couch.

"Where did you run off to?" she asked, giving him a hug.

"I had to make a withdrawal from the bank for my trip. Can't go traveling without money," he smiled, returning the hug.

"Oh okay, come on and watch some TV with us. Afterwards, we were thinking about having an early dinner in downtown Pallet, one last dinner before you leave tomorrow," she sighed.

"Sounds great!" he exclaimed, turning her around to walk back to the couch, 'Now's your chance, Pikachu.'

Pikachu, seeing his opportunity, bolted up the stairs without a single person noticing. It obeyed and placed the box in side Ash's safe and locked it. Ash, remembering that he still had to wrap the present, got up off of the couch.

"I just remembered, I need to go take care of something upstairs for a second," he announced.

"Okay sweetie, just remember, we're having dinner at about 6:30, so be sure to be ready by then," smiled his mother.

Ash glanced up at the clock. It read 3:30.

'I should be done by then,' he thought, as he ran up the stairs and into his room to meet with Pikachu.

He closed and locked the door, making sure that no one saw him.

"Thanks buddy," he smiled, as he proceeded to open the safe and take both the present and a stack of papers out of it.

"Pika?" asked the pokemon, referring to the stack of papers that Ash had removed.

"Oh these," said Ash, showing Pikachu the papers, "These are all photocopies of most of the pictures that me and Misty have taken. Don't worry, a few of them have you and Brock in them too."

He handed Pikachu the pictures, while he sifted through a few of them himself. He smiled as he remembered the 'good ole days' when they lived carefree lives. Their youth reminded him more and more of peace and harmony. That's all there really was back then, before the coming of Aki and Marissa, before the events of two years ago. One of the pictures showed Ash and Misty eating dinner at one of the fancier restaurants in Pallet, one of their first dates. Another one showed Ash, Misty, Brock, Pikachu, and Togepi standing in front of Ash's house, and yet another showed Ash, Misty, and Brock with all of their pokemon when they had taken a vacation at the beach about five years ago.

Another picture, one of his favorites, showed Ash and Misty standing next to one another, fingers intertwined, in front of Ash's house. He treasured the real picture, which sat at his nightstand. Misty had a copy too, but kept it with her at all times in her wallet. Yes, back then they had not a single care, not a worry in the world, but those times have changed. Sure, they still had fun, but times these days seemed a lot more dangerous than they did back then.

Ash put down the pictures and took the present out of the bag, hoping to examine it one more time. He pulled out the necklace and smiled, wondering how it would look on her. He gingerly placed it on his computer desk, got up and then went to his computer to type something up. After printing it up and cutting the words into small pieces, he showed them to Pikachu.

"What do you think?" Ash asked.

The words read "I love you" in black cursive writing. Pikachu, giving him an awkward look, cocked its head to the side.

"Instead of putting pictures in the locket, I want to put this in it. I can't bear to cut up any of our pictures, and besides, she'll know that I'll always love her," he smiled, placing the pieces of paper in the locket. He placed the locket back in its place and started to wrap the present with the photocopied pictures. Upon finishing, he heard a knock on the door. Quickly placing the present back in his safe, he opened the door to see Misty smiling up at him.

"Hey you, what have you been up to all this time?" she asked, walking into the room.

"Nothing, just relaxing, right Pikachu?" smiled Ash, looking to Pikachu for support.

The little mouse pokemon just nodded its head, not wanting to be in the middle of an argument.

"I see. Is that all?" she asked suspiciously.

"Of course!" Ash countered back.

"All right, whatever you say," she shrugged, not really believing them, "I just came up here to see if you needed help packing."

"Well, right now, I'm actually a little worn out. If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to take a little nap. Would you like to join me?" he asked, smiling at her hopefully.

"Sure, I guess I could go for a nap right about now," she smiled, looking up at the clock.

It was 4:00; they had plenty of time to relax before their dinner.

Snuggling up next to Ash on the bed, Misty started to relax her muscles and fall into his warm embrace. Everything about this seemed so right, nothing could ruin the moment, not even her dream about Aki and Marissa. They just weren't relevant right now. She knew that this would be one of the last moments before Ash's departure the next morning.

'Hopefully it won't be our last,' she thought.

Where had that come from? Of course it wouldn't be the last time she would ever see him. He'd be gone for about a month or so, and then return to Pallet after the tournament was over, what was there to worry about?

'Nothing,' she told herself, 'There's absolutely nothing to worry about.'

She looked behind her to see that Ash had already fallen asleep, mouth slightly ajar. She sighed and caressed his face gently.

'I hope…'

A/N: And that concludes Chapter 2. Kind of long, I know, but still I hope it meets your standards. I know it was a very long while before I could update, but I am out of school now and, hopefully, I will be able to update a little more frequently from now on. Thanks to all of you for the support. Keep the reviews coming!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Don't own Pokemon!

A/N: Thanks for the reviews for the last chapter. I tried to get this one up as soon as possible. I hope this fic is meeting everyone's expectations. By the way, this chapter, it would seem, is a very heartfelt one, truly showing the relationship between Ash and Misty. This may sound kind of stupid, but I kind of got goose bumps while I was typing it. Maybe I'm just weird, or a typical romantic, choose one, but either way I hope you all like it. Also, just to let everyone know, I am not up to date with the pokemon series, as in I haven't seen an episode since this 6th season started. I don't know any of the new pokemon, so don't expect me to use any of the newer ones that Ash may have captured in this fic. Sorry about that, but I'm sticking to the old school ones. Anyway enjoy!

Chapter 3

The sun shone brightly, the birds chirped happily, and the breeze that whisked throughout the household felt heavenly.

Awakening to the sounds of the bird pokemon outside, Misty rolled to her side, but found something small blocking her path. She groggily opened her eyes and attempted to rub the sleep out of them. Their dinner last night had completely drained her remaining energy and, to top it off, she still had to help Ash pack for his big day. As her vision finally began to focus, her gaze landed on the object that was sitting on the bed. It was a small box, no bigger than a book, with oddly wrapped paper around it. Misty lifted it up to eye level and examined it. She squinted her eyes to try and make out the figures on the wrapping. Her eyes widened as she realized who the figures were.

'What is this?' she thought, searching the room for Ash, but he was no where in sight.

"They're pictures of us, all of us," she said aloud, "Ash!"

Upon hearing approaching footsteps, Misty stood up and put her robe on. When the door opened, she looked up to see Ash's smiling face. He seemed bright and cheery, as always, and he was already fully dressed and ready to go, from the looks of it.

"I see you found my gift," he said, approaching her.

He took the gift from her hands and examined it himself.

"Pretty cool, huh?" he admired, taking another look at the pictures.

"What is this?"

"Can't you tell, they're pictures of us," smirked Ash.

"You know what I mean," argued Misty.

Ash smiled and kissed her on the forehead.

"You know I'm going to miss you this coming month, right?" he asked, pulling her into his chest.

"Yeah, I know, but that still doesn't explain the gift," she smiled, looking up from her position.

"I know, I'm getting there," said Ash, releasing the embrace, "Like I was saying, I'm going to miss you and I know you'll miss me too, hopefully," he smirked, "I just wanted to give this to you as an early birthday present. I want you to think of us every time you wear it, promise me?"

Ash's words were heartfelt and sincere, almost as if he had rehearsed them previously, but Misty, of course, knew that was not the case. He gave a pleading look that made Misty want to melt into his embrace.

"I promise," she said, smiling up at him, "What is it?"

"Well, you'll just have to open it and find out," countered Ash, taking a seat on the bed.

Misty followed suit and sat in Ash's lap, holding the present upright. She started to carefully unwrap the present, not wanting to rip it. Peeling each piece of tape seemed like surgery to Misty. The pictures were all so wonderful that she'd hate to ruin them. She would treasure them always and keep them in her treasure box she used to keep under her bed as a child. All her treasured things were in there; pictures, trinkets, lucky pennies, anything you could possibly think of, and now she was going to add this to the collection.

Finally, removing the last piece of paper from the box, Misty breathed a sigh of relief, happy that she did not rip any part of the pictures.

"I was half expecting you to just rip the present open, that's why they aren't the real copies," smiled Ash.

"I'm going to treasure this forever. I've never had anyone put so much thought into a present for me before," sighed Misty, staring at the floor.

"You deserve it, now, don't leave me in suspense," he said, wrapping his arms around her, "Go ahead and open it."

Misty nodded her head and lifted the top of the box. She gasped when she saw the glistening of the diamond and almost dropped the box out of shock. The locket shone brilliantly, the diamond sparkled in the morning sunlight that was pouring through the open window.

"Ash…" Misty gasped.

She lifted it out of the box and just stared at it, awestruck at its beauty. Every part of it sparkled; from the chain to the diamond that adorned it. She opened the locket and saw the words that she had heard everyday Ash had been with her. 'I Love You.' That made her smile and, surprisingly, a single tear fell from Misty's eyes.

"Don't leave me hanging," smiled Ash hopefully, "Do you like it?"

Misty smiled and tried to speak, but found that no words would come, so she did the only thing that seemed natural to her. She turned around and held his face in her hands. She brought her lips down to his, teary eyed, but happy nonetheless. Ash's arms tightened around her tiny frame as he returned the kiss she had bestowed upon him. Misty gently placed her arms around Ash's neck and held his head in her hands, relishing in one of their last moments together before Ash's departure. As soon as it had started, Misty released the kiss, overcome by how much love she felt for the man she was with.

"I'll take that as a yes," whispered Ash as Misty threw her arms around him once again, "I love you."

Misty smiled and hugged him even tighter.

"I love you too," she sniffed, feeling her tears return.

Never, from her recollection, had she ever cried out of happiness. Ash made her so happy, that it brought her to tears. How many people in her life had she known to possess that kind of power? Not many, that was for sure.

Ash pulled her away from him and turned her around on his lap.

"Come on Mist, don't cry," smiled Ash.

He pulled the necklace from out of its case, placed it around her neck, and clipped it into place. He pulled the locket forward and then stood up, moving her in front of his mirror. He wrapped his arms around her and whispered in her ear.

"Beautiful…" he soothed, "Happy birthday."

"Th-thank you Ash," stuttered Misty, still shocked by Ash's kindness, "I-I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything," smiled Ash, "All I want to hear is that you'll love me until however long we're together…until fate separates us."

Misty was caught off guard by that remark. Fate was something that neither of them could control and it seemed, to Misty at least, that Ash understood that, but something still bothered her about the way he said it.

"That won't ever happen," she countered, turning to face him, "I can't bare the thought of being separated from you."

Ash just nodded his head without a word. He held her at arms distance and gave her a gentle smile.

"I will always be with you, do you understand me? Always, no matter how far apart we are. I'll always be in here," he whispered, pointing to her heart, "Just as long as you love me."

"I will always love you, Ash…always," she replied, breaking into quiet sobs once again.

He brought her into his arms and hugged her tightly.

"I know…I know," he repeated, letting out a sigh.

"I fall in love with you more and more everyday," Misty responded, lifting her head up from his chest, "I don't know how…I don't know what it is that makes me feel this way, but I never want it stop. I've never known true happiness until you came into my life. I can't imagine where I would be without you," she smiled, "Words can't express how or what I'm feeling right now, I just wish it would last forever."

Upon hearing Misty's confession, several tears found their way down Ash's cheeks. He had never, in his life, had anyone tell him anything like that before. The sheer sincerity in her voice made Ash want to whisk her away and never look back. He felt the urge to take her away from everything, make her his forever, but he knew that wasn't possible, not now anyway. He would promise to protect her from anything that would threaten to harm her, even if it meant risking his own life.

"You are so precious to me. I'd be lost without you too. Don't you ever leave me, you hear?" whispered Ash.

Misty nodded her head and continued to hold Ash firmly. They stood there, in each others arms, content where they stood. Happy to be in each other's presence, neither felt the urge to rush the moment, but both knew it would be over soon.

"Mist," Ash spoke quietly.

"Yes, Ash," she whispered back.

Ash thought carefully about what he was going to say and sighed.

"If anything was to happen to me, and I mean anything, I want you to continue living," he whispered.

Misty looked up and examined his face, not entirely sure where he was going with this.

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean, if one day, something caused me to not be by your side, I want you to move on," he answered.

"Ash, why are you talking like this?" she asked with pleading eyes.

What had once started as words of love and passion had turned into words of confusion and fear. Misty had no idea what Ash was talking about, let alone even begin to comprehend a life without him.

"You're starting to scare me," she sniffed.

Ash gave her his trademark smile and hugged her again.

"I'm sorry Mist, forget I said anything. I just love you, that's all. I didn't mean to make you worry," he smiled, "Let's just forget about it for now and show mom and Brock your new necklace."

He started to head for the door, but was held back by Misty. Ash turned around and looked at her to see even more tears streaming down her face.

"Misty, I…" Ash started, but was cut off by Misty.

"You'd want me to move on…without you…" she interrupted.

Ash simply nodded, sorry he brought the subject up.

"Life's not worth living if it's not with the one I love," she whispered.

Ash kneeled down, held both her hands in his, and looked up at her tear stained face.

"Misty, listen to me, I'm not going anywhere, well, except for the tournament," he smiled before continuing, "I'll be with you for as long as humanly possible and I will protect you from anything that threatens to harm you…that I can promise you."

Misty nodded as Ash wiped the remaining tears away from her face and gave her a comforting hug.

"I promise you," he whispered, "But for now, don't think about it. Just as long as we continue to love, everything will be fine."

Misty simply nodded, giving into Ash's warm embrace once again. Ash was not one to break promises, nor was he the type to say things that he didn't mean, but still…something didn't feel right…but for now, at least, Misty would do as Ash said and not think about it.

"Okay, I'll try not to think about it too much," she smiled, pulling Ash to his feet.

"That's my girl," Ash smiled, holding her hand, "Now come on, breakfast is ready."

Ash began to pull Misty's hand when she, all of a sudden withdrew.

"What's wrong?" he asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Nothing, I'll catch up later. There's something I need to do first," she smiled.

"Misty," started Ash.

"Don't worry. I'm fine…I promise," she comforted.

Ash smiled and nodded his head and then, without another word, walked out of the room. As soon as Ash had closed the door and it was safe to say that he was already making his way downstairs, Misty threw her purse on his desk and began to search. She sifted through various receipts, her wallet, until she found what she had been looking for. She pulled it out and examined it a moment. She flicked the lid open and smiled as it shone. It was true, Misty's birthday was in about a month or so, but so was Ash's. If Ash had given Misty her present early, then she had no problem as to why she shouldn't give his early either.

Upon quickly getting dressed and combing her hair, she stuffed the small box in her pocket and ran downstairs to join the others. When entering the kitchen, she saw, Mrs. Ketchum, Ash, Brock, Pikachu, and Togepi already inhaling their food.

"Oh, good morning Misty," greeted Mrs. Ketchum, "How did you sleep?"

"I slept well last night. I was exhausted after coming home from dinner last night," replied Misty, taking a seat across from Ash, "Hi Pikachu, hey Togepi."

"Pika!"

"Choki priii!"

"You get your packing done last night, Ash?" inquired Brock, who stuffed another piece of bacon into his already full mouth.

"Yeah, pretty much. I just have to assemble the team that I'm going to be taking with me to compete," he replied, taking a bite out of his toast.

"There won't be any pokecenter for you to switch pokemon?" asked Brock.

"I don't see why there wouldn't be, but just to be on the safe side. I don't want to risk it," explained Ash as he took a sip of his orange juice.

"What pokemon are you thinking of taking?" asked Mrs. Ketchum.

"Hmm…I think I'll go with Noctowl, Bulbasaur, Cyndaquil, Kingler, Snorlax, and, of course, Pikachu," finished Ash.

"Sounds like a good, solid team you have there," nodded Brock, "Fire, water, grass, electricity…very nicely balanced."

Just then, something caught Brock's attention. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see something shimmering around Misty's neck. She was not exactly the type to where extravagant jewelry, let alone anything with diamonds.

"Where'd you get that?" he asked her suddenly pointing to the necklace.

Misty looked down to see her new present and smiled.

"Ash gave it to me as an early birthday present," smiled Misty, remembering the events of ten minutes ago.

"My son gave this to you?" asked Mrs. Ketchum in complete shock, "It's absolutely beautiful."

Mrs. Ketchum held it in her hands and examined it a moment, taking in its beauty.

"Oh Misty, it's beautiful," awed Mrs. Ketchum, still shocked that her son had such good taste in jewelry.

"Thanks," blushed Misty.

"Not bad, Ash," smiled Brock, also surprised that his long-time friend knew a thing or two about what women liked, "Maybe you could give me a few pointers."

"Sure Brock, anytime," laughed Ash.

From there on out, the breakfast went smoothly without any other distractions. Ash was deep in thought about the tournament and mentally thanked Misty for persuading him to participate. Misty, also deep in thought, prayed for the best. She knew Ash would be gone about a month, maybe even longer, but she had to stay strong, despite her worries of Aki and Marissa. Brock, on the other hand, was thinking about what he was going to do while Ash was away at Emerald Coliseum. Maybe he would go back home and visit his father and siblings, or perhaps he would stay in Pallet and give Mrs. Ketchum a hand with the chores. Either way, he always had a place to stay, and he was definitely grateful for that.

Upon finishing breakfast, Ash and Pikachu ran upstairs to gather their belongings. About a minute later, Ash came rushing down the staircase with his backpack and pokeballs in tow. Mrs. Ketchum ushered them outside as they prepared to say their final goodbyes.

Ash looked out over the horizon and sighed. This was it; he was really going alone this time around. No Misty, no Brock, just Pikachu and his pokemon to keep him company, not that he didn't enjoy Pikachu's company. He was excited, but at the same time, a bit nervous about going alone. He faced his mother, Brock, and Misty and prepared to say goodbye.

"Well, see you around Brock," smiled Ash as he shook Brock's hand.

"Likewise," smiled Brock, returning the handshake, "Good luck up there and be careful."

"Thanks, I will," he responded, turning to his mother, "See you later mom," he said, giving her a big hug.

"Oh, my boy is growing up so fast," squealed Mrs. Ketchum as she returned the hug and kissed him on the cheek, "You be careful up there Ash, do you hear me?"

"Yeah, I will," smiled Ash.

Finally, he turned to Misty, who was playing with something in her pocket. Ash gave her a strange look and approached her slowly. Misty, all of a sudden, pulled the object out of her pocket, much to Ash's surprise. She flicked the lid open to reveal a silver ID bracelet. On the front, their names were engraved, as well as the year. On the back, in cursive, the words 'I Love You' were engraved.

"This was your birthday present too, and since you gave me mine early, I decided to give yours early too," she smiled as she removed the bracelet from the box.

"You didn't have to," started Ash, examining the bracelet as she held it in her hands.

"Of course I did. What kind of person would I be if I didn't get the person I loved a present for their birthday?" she asked, placing it around his wrist.

"It's beautiful. Thanks Mist," smiled Ash, admiring his new gift and giving her a hug, It kind of matches the ring you gave me last Christmas," he said, pulling out a silver ring and placing it on his finger. He kept it with him at all times, even though sometimes, he refrained from wearing it. It had his full name, in cursive, as well as the date they first started dating. He cherished it and couldn't bare the thought of losing it. It had an emerald green stone signifying his birth month, which was May, "I'll keep these gifts with me everyday that we're apart, I promise," whispered Ash, "Thanks again."

"Your welcome, but its still nothing compared to the gift you gave me," she sighed, falling into his embrace.

"The necklace wasn't that big of a deal," he said, holding her tightly.

"I wasn't talking about the necklace," she smiled.

Ash just smiled. He knew exactly what she was talking about now. She was referring to the gift of love, as sappy as it sounded. Without him even knowing it, Ash had given Misty more than just a present, but more along the lines of his heart. Misty had never known true love, let alone, compassion until she crossed paths with Ash that fateful morning. Their hearts had become intertwined, and that was something, Misty knew, would never change.

Ash lowered his head down and gently bestowed a kiss upon Misty's delicate lips. She took in every moment, every scent, and every touch that she would be missing this coming month. She didn't know how she would be able to survive, but, for Ash's sake, she would try. She lifted her hand and ran it through his thick, black hair, relishing in the moment that they were currently sharing, but all too soon, both of them knew it would end.

Ash released the kiss and took a long look at Misty, as it would be one of the last times he would see her until he returned. He smiled at her and then stared at his two friends and his mother.

"So, what are you guys going to do while I'm gone?" asked Ash.

"Well, I gave it a long hard thought, and I decided that I'd like to stay here, if that's all right with you Mrs. K," said Brock with pleading eyes.

"Of course it's all right Brock, I could use the company," she smiled, and then turned to Misty, "You're welcome to stay too Misty if you'd like."

"No, that's okay, thanks for the offer though," smiled Misty.

"What are you going to do then?" Ash asked.

"I was thinking of heading back to Cerulean City tonight to visit my sisters and just sort of relax until you get back. When you do return, you'll know where to look me up," she finished.

"Sounds good," he replied, "Well, I guess this is it guys."

Both Brock and Misty nodded knowingly and gave their friend one last hug and words of encouragement for the road.

"Take care of him for us Pikachu," reminded Misty.

"Pikachu!"

"Okay, I guess I'll see you guys later then," he said, backing away in the direction of the main road out of Pallet, "See you in a month."

'I look forward to it,' thought Misty, gripping onto her precious locket.

As Ash headed in the direction of the next town, a million thoughts seemed to pass through his mind. He had wanted to put Misty's mind at ease concerning her dreams, but the more he thought about them, the more he worried about what they could mean. Sure, it could've been just a regular old nightmare, but what if it was something more. It wasn't his own safety he was worried about, it was Misty's. Would she be okay without him? Ash sighed to himself, not really knowing the answer. They had made many promises the night before, and Ash had no intent on breaking any of them, he just hoped fate would see things his way for once.

He had promised her the night before that he would protect her from anything that would threaten to harm her…but little did he know that the one that would cause her suffering…would be himself.

A/N: Well? How did you guys like that one? I got this updated in like record time. Anyway, hope you all liked it! Review away! Thanks guys! AAML forever!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Don't own pokemon!

A/N: Not much to say but here's chapter 4 and thanks for reviewing. Keep them coming!

Chapter 4

'Why hasn't he called me yet? I'm starting to get worried,' thought a very frustrated Misty as she sat poolside at the Cerulean City gym.

It had been several days since Ash had left for the Emerald Coliseum tournament and still no word from him. Misty's anxiety was at an all time high, each time the phone would ring, she would be the first to answer, only to find complete and utter disappointment at hearing a strangers' voice. Every time the phone rang, Daisy, Violet, and Lily rolled their eyes in unison as they watched their desperate younger sister dive for the phone. Each time felt more and more disappointing for Misty. Had something happened to Ash? No, she didn't want to worry herself, let alone, anyone else.

"Oh, you worry to much sis, like, Ash can take care of himself," replied Misty's eldest sister, Daisy.

Misty sighed deeply and thought about her sisters' words.

"Maybe your right," she sighed.

Misty clutched the locket that Ash had given her just a few days ago and hoped her sister was right. Her biggest worry was that he wouldn't make it to the tournament safely, especially since her dream concerning Aki and Marissa.

"Besides, I'm sure it'll take more than a few days to reach the next town," nodded Daisy, "Give him a break Misty."

Daisy began to walk away from the pool area when, all of a sudden, a voice rang throughout the gym.

"HEY MISTY!" screamed Lily as she ran into the pool area, phone in hand.

Daisy covered her ears and cringed at the sound of her younger sister's voice.

"Like, what the hell is your problem! We're not deaf Lily!" yelled Daisy.

Lily smiled sheepishly and put her hand behind her head in embarrassment.

"Sorry guys," she smiled, handing the phone to Misty, "Here Mist, it's for you. It's Ash."

Misty's heart skipped a beat as she heard her utter his name. She let out a breath, a bit relieved that Ash had made it to the next town. She excitedly took the phone from her sister and put it to her ear.

"Speak of the devil," shrugged Daisy, as she walked out of the pool area, followed by Lily, thinking that her sister deserved a little alone time.

"Hello?" she said nervously, although she wasn't sure why she was nervous.

"Hey you," replied a familiar voice.

"Ash!" Misty exclaimed, a little louder than she wanted.

"Hey, are you trying to make me deaf or something?" laughed Ash.

Misty laughed at his antics, happy to hear the sound of his sweet voice again. It had felt like forever since she had last heard from him, although, in actuality, it was only a few days. The sound of his voice reassured her that everything was okay for the time being and her worries slowly began to diminish.

"Where are you?" Misty asked.

"I just reached the first town. It took a little longer than I thought it would," explained Ash, "Sorry if I worried you."

"It's okay. I'm just glad to hear that you made it all right," replied Misty happily.

"Yeah, both me and Pikachu are just fine," smiled Ash, "Hey, want to do me a favor?"

"Uh…sure, I guess," she said, a little uncertain as to what his request would be.

"Go inside and hook up your video phone…I want to see you," he admitted.

Misty walked inside of the gym, smiling at Ash's charms. He had never failed to make her feel more special than she already was.

"You miss me that much, do you?" laughed Misty, sitting down in front of the screen.

"Maybe just a little," he replied.

Misty pushed a button and the screen came to life. Immediately, she saw Ash's smiling face and it made her want to melt on the spot. Why did he always make her feel this way?

"Seeing your face again makes me realize how much more I miss you," smiled Ash sincerely.

"I miss you too," sighed Misty, "I wish you were here."

"Hey, don't pull that on me. This whole thing was your idea," argued Ash.

"I know, I just miss you, that's all," replied Misty.

She set the phone down on the table and smiled at him.

"I feel the same," he smiled.

There were a few moments of silence, which caught Misty's attention. There had never been silence between the two of them before, not that she could remember anyway. She watched as Ash stared at something off screen, seemingly in another world.

"Ash, what's wrong?" she asked, sensing his dismay.

"Nothing," he said simply.

"Ash, don't you lie to me," said Misty seriously, "This is not the time to be keeping secrets from me."

Ash fiddled with his fingers, as he played with the phone in his hands.

"Look, I'm not hiding anything. I guess I'm just nervous about the tournament," he admitted, "I'm not used to being out here alone."

Misty just smiled at him, a bit relieved about his worries.

"You'll be just fine. You always tend to come out on top in the end," she comforted.

Ash just sighed and smiled at her words, finding some confidence within them.

"Maybe you're right," he sighed and then smiled as he continued, "Well, I just called to check up on you. I have to go if I'm going to get started first thing tomorrow."

"Okay," sighed Misty as she bit her lip, feeling tears welling up in her eyes, but trying her best to hold them back.

Ash, sensing her discomfort, gave her a gentle smile.

"Hey, what's this?" smiled Ash, "You aren't exactly making this easy on me, you know?"

Misty wiped her eyes and smiled at him as best she could.

"I know, I'm sorry, I just miss you so much," she sighed.

"I know, but before you know it, I'll be back and we'll continue our journey together. How does that sound?" he asked.

"Sounds like a plan," she smiled, hoping the days would fly by faster.

"Okay, but until then, I need you to be strong for me," he stated, lifting his hand up to the screen to attempt to touch her.

She nodded and lifted her hand up as well. She wanted so much to touch him, to be with him, it was killing her inside, but for Ash's sake, she would remain strong.

"I love you and I'll call you later," he said.

"I love you too. Be careful Ash," she smiled, ready to end the call.

"I will. Bye sweetie."

"Bye," uttered Misty as the screen went blank.

Instead of getting up out of her seat, she just sat there, not wanting to make a move. She put the phone back on the receiver and waited. She wasn't sure exactly what it was she was waiting for. Finally, for what seemed like forever, she got up out of her seat and, absentmindedly, walked upstairs and into her room. She shut the door behind her, not wanting to deal with the questions from her sisters, and laid down on her bed.

In the past, thinking had always made her feel calmer, it always soothed her to know that she was alone with her thoughts, but now, everything was different. Her thoughts worried her to the extent of crying. Although Ash had seemed confident that these so-called visions were indeed just dreams, Misty had other ideas. She wanted to trust Ash and believe his words, but she found that utterly impossible. And now, with him gone, she felt even more uneasy than ever. She kept telling herself that everything would be alright, that Hikara would have warned them by now, that she was just being extremely paranoid…but everything kept pointing to the possibility that it wasn't just a dream, but that they were all in grave danger, especially Ash.

Ash was the chosen one, or at least, that's what they called him. Why did it have to be him? Why couldn't it have been someone else? Their lives had changed because of the events of two years ago, why did it have to be them? Why? Why? Why?

"Why?" yelled Misty, a little louder than she would have liked.

She held her head in her hands and then looked in her mirror that hung on her dresser. She stared at the locket Ash had given her and smiled, trying to relieve herself of the frustration that she felt.

Grabbing a piece of paper and pen from her nearby end table, she began to write a letter to Ash. She needed something, anything to get her mind off of Aki and Marissa.

'Dear Ash,

I'm just writing to tell you how much I miss you. I felt like I needed to write this, don't ask me why. I felt like I needed a way out, a way to escape reality. I'll be blunt with you, Ash, I am afraid of what's to come in the future, even though you tell me not to worry, I still do, but not for myself. I worry for you and only you because, without you, I'm not whole. That's why I need you to hurry up, win the tournament, and come home ASAP! I'm just kidding sweetie. Seriously though, you never realize how much someone means to you until they are gone. Well, with that last thought, I hope to hear from you when you reach the next town. Good luck and be careful Ash. I love you with all my heart.

Love, Misty'

She finished her letter and smiled at it in approval. She kissed it and then sealed it inside of its envelope. She then added the return address and the destination's address as well as adding the stamp. Throwing the letter into her mailbox, she ran back up the stairs, and drifted off into a much needed slumber.

Misty found herself in total darkness. She had felt as if she had been here before. Everything felt strangely and yet, eerily familiar. She looked around for anything that would tell her where she was, a light, a person, anything. Just then, a sinister male laugh could be heard in the distance. With every passing second, the laugh seemed to be getting closer and closer.

"W-Who's there?" yelled Misty, searching in all directions.

"You did not heed my warning," came a familiar voice, Aki.

Misty let out the breath that she had been holding since being trapped in the darkness. It just couldn't be, not again. She felt her throat constrict and her voice began to weaken. Continuing to search the area, her efforts became futile.

"I will not be ignored!" yelled the voice as Misty felt her throat closing in on her. She held her throat as she dropped to her knees.

'Ash, where are you? Please…help me…' she thought as tears started to drop down her face.

"He will not come for you this time around," came a second female voice, Marissa, "He is weak and does not possess the strength to save you now."

"He will die at my hands and there is nothing you can do to save him now."

Misty's head started to get fuzzy as she felt herself losing consciousness. She felt the life being drained from her body as a cold chill ran up her spine. This was what it must feel like to die…

Catching her breath, Misty jolted up from her position on her bed. She looked down and saw that her hands were shaking and that she was engulfed in a cold sweat.

"When will this ever stop," whispered Misty, "Ash…please be careful…"

"Pikachu!" greeted the pokemon as it tried to wake its sleepy trainer.

"I know, I know," yawned Ash as he stood from his bed, "Morning already, huh?"

Ash stretched out his arms and proceeded to the bathroom, his stomach rumbling.

"Man, I'm hungry. You ready for some breakfast buddy?"

"Pika!" exclaimed the tiny pokemon.

"All right, let's go," he smiled grabbing his bag and heading out the door.

After finishing breakfast, Ash and Pikachu left in hopes of reaching the next town before sundown.

"I hope we're doing the right thing Pikachu," sighed Ash.

"Pika pikachu?" asked Pikachu.

"What I mean is that I hope it was wise of me to leave Misty and Brock. I keep thinking about the dreams that Misty was having. What if Aki and Marissa are back and are planning an attack?" Ash asked, worried.

"Pi…pika chu pikachu pi," Pikachu said.

"Yeah, I know I told Misty that there was nothing to worry about, but anything's possible now. I feel like I'm playing right into their hands," explained Ash.

"Pikachu pi pika pika chu," it reassured.

"I hope you're right buddy…for everyone's sake," sighed Ash.

"Pikachu pi pikachu?" Pikachu asked.

"Yeah, I'll call Misty when we get to the next town," he sighed, "She'll kill me if I don't."

"Pika," it agreed.

Ash put his hands behind his head and sighed once more. He took a glance up at the morning sky and thought about his friends back home. What were they doing now? Were they safe? And this led Ash to continue to think about Aki and Marissa. He prayed that, in the unfortunate event, Aki and Marissa did return, they would all remain safe and sound. Safety was a luxury that was hard to come by day after day and Ash was starting to have second thoughts about leaving, but it was what Misty had wanted, after all.

'What if Aki and Marissa did return? Since we're all scattered, which one of us would they go after first?' he thought, not wanting to think of the answer.

He knew the answer, of course, but didn't want to admit it to himself. Misty seemed to be the most probable choice of the three of them. She seemed to have more mental and spiritual power than she thought and, Ash believed, Aki could use that as an advantage, a way to tip the scales in his favor.

Ash quickly wiped the thoughts from memory and hoped that everything would be okay in the end. He would compete, return home, and then they'd carry on with their journey. Everything would be as it was when he had left, or so he thought.

All the while, Ash completely absorbed in thought, neither him nor Pikachu had noticed the darkness that loomed overhead in the next town…

"So, you had another dream, eh?" asked Brock, as he propped the phone on his shoulder, as he vigorously washed the dishes at the Ketchum residence.

"Yeah…I don't care what Ash says, they're out there somewhere. I can almost feel their presence," replied Misty in a scared tone.

"Hey, don't go worrying yourself now. That's the last thing we need," warned Brock as he put a plate down and gave Misty his full attention.

"How can I not worry Brock?" yelled Misty.

"Whoa! Okay, okay, all I'm saying is that you shouldn't be stressing about this until we know for sure. Let Hikara and Ash's dad handle things for now. They'll inform us if anything happens," soothed Brock.

"I just don't like waiting for something to happen, especially if it involves Ash's life," sighed Misty as she took a seat on one of the bleachers in the pool area.

"Ash will be fine for now. We need to give him a little credit; after all, he's a smart kid. He'll know if something's going on and besides, Pikachu is with him too," he reassured.

"I guess your right," said Misty, "Listen, I'll call you back later. I need to clear my head."

"Okay, see you later. Take care," smiled Brock, hanging up the phone.

For several moments, Brock didn't move, not sure what to believe anymore. He placed another set of dishes into the soapy water and sighed aloud.

'Ash, you better come back in one piece.'

A/N: And that concludes Chapter 4. Sorry if it seems kind of boring, but the good stuff is still yet to come! Keep those reviews coming!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Don't own pokemon!

A/N: Here's Chapter 5! Enjoy!

Chapter 5

A gentle morning breeze swept through the open doors of the Cerulean City gym as Misty, a bit calmer from her conversation with Brock, laid poolside, thinking about Ash.

'Maybe Brock's right, maybe I am worrying too much about this whole thing,' she thought to herself as she sighed aloud, 'But then why do I keep having these dreams?'

She got up from her seat on the bleachers and removed her shirt and shorts to reveal a red halter top bikini while also removing the necklace Ash had given her. She walked to the water's edge and looked at her reflection in the water. The reflection stared right back at her. That person in the water seemed so refined, so calm and collective, but, on the inside, she was hurting. Although her expressions didn't show it, she was a mess because of what was happening. She wasn't sure what to believe, whether Aki and Marissa had returned or if it was just a figment of her imagination. No one was sure. And that made it all the more frustrating.

"Maybe I just need to relax," she told herself as she stepped into the cooling waters of her Olympic size pool.

She jumped in, hoping to wash away her fears, and swam several laps around the pool before coming to a stop in the middle and proceeding to float on her back. She stared up at the ceiling, trying to let the water's effects take place…then, all of a sudden, she felt herself being dragged to the bottom of the pool. She struggled to resurface but her efforts were in vain. Just then, everything turned black. Misty looked up to see that she was no longer in the Cerulean City gym.

"Is this proof enough that we still live?" asked a voice from within the darkness.

Misty swung her head in all directions but still saw nothing but the never ending darkness. She recognized the voice immediately and knew that they had returned for their revenge. She knew she wouldn't make it out alive this time, they had her right where they wanted her and they weren't letting go….not this time…

"It seems you've given up," laughed Marissa, "Either that or you're running out of air."

Misty shook her head in response.

"You're completely out of options this time around. The chosen one is already dead as far as we're concerned," smirked Marissa.

Misty's eyes widened at her remark. He couldn't be, he just couldn't. She had just spoken to him a while ago. Was it possible that they reached him already?

Just then, a shiny object presented itself to Misty. She reached out and grabbed it, unsure of what it was. Looking at it, she realized that it was the locket Ash had given her, but something was different. It was covered in a thick red substance almost like…

'Blood…Ash, no,' thought Misty, feeling imminent tears welling up in her eyes, despite her wet surroundings.

"You will get yours…soon my treasure…soon…." Aki's voice faded as Misty let out her final breathe.

"Misty? Can you hear me! Please Misty…"

Misty recognized the voice instantly and slowly opened her eyes. Wait, opened her eyes? That meant she was alive?

She looked around to see her three sisters bent over her, concerned looks etched on their faces.

"Thank goodness you're okay," breathed Daisy.

"W-What happened?" asked Misty, hearing the shakiness in her voice.

"You, like, almost drowned, that's what happened," explained Lily, "What the hell were you doing anyway?"

"I-I…" Misty hesitated for a moment. She was at a loss for words. What really did happen? She was almost sure Aki and Marissa would deal in the final blow, so why didn't they? What were they waiting for? They had her, she was vulnerable to attack and yet, nothing. She couldn't explain what had happened to her sisters, they'd completely lose it, "I-I don't know. I must have passed out or something."

"Well, the important thing is that you're okay," commented Violet as she helped her younger sister up.

As she stood, Misty heard a metal object fall to the ground. She examined the floor and saw it. It was the locket that she had placed on the bleacher about ten minutes ago. How had it made it's way to her? She gingerly picked it up and remembering what had happened in the water, started to get light headed.

'This is no coincidence,' thought Misty, 'Ash is in trouble.'

"That's some storm out there, eh Pikachu?' Ash asked as he looked out of the window of the pokemon center. They had made it to the next town just as the storm hit, they were lucky enough to receive shelter for the night, especially since there seemed to be about several dozen people in the center.

"Pika pika," it agreed, nodding it's little head.

"Excuse me young man," came a voice from behind. Ash whipped his head around, a bit startled, but soon straightened up when she saw Nurse Joy smiling at him, "I'm sorry if I startled you."

"No, it's no problem. Can I help you Nurse Joy?" Ash asked, a little curious as to what she wanted.

"Yes, maybe you can help me. I'm looking for a trainer named Ash Ketchum," she said.

"Well, I believe I may be of assistance. I'm Ash," he smiled, seeing the relieved look on the Nurse's face.

"Oh, well, in that case, an urgent call came in from Cerulean City before you arrived," she started.

"Did you say Ceruean City?" interrupted Ash.

"Yes, I did," she said as she handed him an envelope, "And this came for you as well."

"Thanks Joy," replied Ash as he headed to the nearest pay phone, Pikachu hot on his tracks.

'I hope Misty's okay,' thought Ash as he sat on the provided chair and proceeded to punch in the familiar numbers.

Back at the Cerulean City gym, Misty was resting comfortably on her bed, thinking about her near-death experience. She twirled her locket in her hands, still thinking about the blood that had once stained it's beauty.

'He had his chance, so why didn't Aki just kill me? He had no problem trying to kill me the last time we met, why would he spare me now? What is he waiting for?' Misty thought to herself, completely oblivious to the fact that her sister was standing right in front of her.

"Hello? Like, Earth to Misty, do you copy?" waved Violet, as she waved the phone in Misty's direction.

"Huh? Oh, hey Violet, sorry about that. I kind of need some time to myself," she started, not noticing the phone in Violet's hands, "Do you mind leaving--"

"Fine, I suppose you're not interested in talking to Ash then," Violet interrupted.

"Ash!" exclaimed Misty, snatching the phone from her sister.

"Your welcome," sighed Violet as she exited the room.

"Hello?"

"Mist, are you okay? Violet just told me what happened," he exclaimed in a panic.

"Ash, I'm fine. The person I'm worried about is you," explained Misty.

"Me?" thought Ash, "You mean that storm that just hit? Don't worry about--"

"Ash, you have to come back to Pallet!" cried Misty.

Ash examined her face and saw fear in her eyes. A fear unlike anything he had ever seen within her before. A fear so intense, it seemed almost deadly.

"Misty…what's the matter?" asked Ash seriously.

Misty bit her lower lip as she held the sobs that she had wanted to release earlier that day.

"Ash…it wasn't my fault I almost drowned," she tried to explain.

"But you're sisters told me that you had passed out," countered Ash, confused about where this was going.

"No, that wasn't the reason…far from it," she started, "It was Aki and Marissa."

Ash held a breath for a moment, showing no signs of emotion. His greatest fears had been confirmed. Both him and Misty were separated, making them vulnerable. He should have known better than to run off to some tournament, especially after Misty's first dream.

"I'm coming back Misty. If they hurt you--"

"No Ash! No! You don't get it!" yelled Misty, "They aren't after me…they're after you. They're going to kill you the first chance they get! Don't give them that chance!"

Ash's eyes widened as his heart started to race. He had never seen Misty this upset before. She seemed on the verge of tears and he was miles away, unable to do anything to console her.

"Misty, calm down. You don't know they're after me, but for right now, we need to stay calm about this," soothed Ash.

"But I do know they're after you Ash!" she started, "In all these dreams…they've been telling me that they're going to kill you, I was just afraid to tell you. I'm sorry Ash, I'm so sorry."

Ash's mind started to reel. They were after him the entire time, but where would they strike next? Would they go after his friends and family in order to get to him? It seems they had already done that with Misty, but what about Brock and his mother?

"Ash, I'm sorry," sobbed Misty.

"No Misty! Don't you dare apologize for this! You couldn't help it, you didn't want me to worry. It's okay," sighed Ash.

"What are we going to do?" asked Misty.

"I'm coming home," he said, "When I get back, we'll think something, but, in the meantime, keep safe."

Misty simply nodded her head as a response.

"I'll try to be back in Cerulean in a few days, but I'll notify you if something changes," explained Ash, "We'll try contacting Li and Sakura if nothing else works."

"Okay, please be careful Ash," nodded Misty.

"I will. Take care, I love you," he smiled.

"I love you too."

Before Ash knew it, he had ended the call with Misty, placing the receiver back on the cradle. He looked to Pikachu and then stood up once more.

"Let's go Pikachu. We're out of here, we have to make it back to Cerulean as soon as possible," commented Ash.

He started to head for the door, the storm continuing to rage outside.

"You're not going anywhere in that storm, young man," called Nurse Joy as she walked up to them.

"But I have to go," explained Ash as he argued with Nurse Joy.

Loud thundering and flashes of lightening could be seen and heard from outside of the pokemon center as Ash spoke. He shuddered at the massive noise and covered his ears. The lightening he was used to, being with Pikachu for years took care of that fear, but the thunder was another story. Just when Ash was about to head for the door again, the lights start to flicker and then finally, die.

"Now do you understand the severity of the storm," scolded the nurse, "We were instructed to keep everyone indoors, emergency or not."

"But I have to get to Cerulean City," sighed Ash as he looked up at the now blackened sky.

"I'm sorry sir, but all transportation has stopped due to the weather," said Joy.

"Great, now what do I do?" complained Ash in frustration, "There's no way to contact Misty either."

"Here," replied Joy, handing Ash a cell phone, "You should hurry and make your call before the phone company gets hit too."

"Thanks Joy," Ash smiled as he took the phone from her and quickly dialed the numbers.

"Hello?"

"Misty, it's Ash," he answered, "Listen, the storm is pretty bad out here. I'm going to be delayed about a day, okay?"

"Ash, the storm is Aki's doing, I just know it," replied Misty, "Please be careful."

"Don't worry, I will," smiled Ash, "The main road from this city back to Cerulean has been blocked by a mudslide, so I'm going to have to take the shortcut through the rock tunnel."

"Okay, then I guess I'll be seeing you in a few days," smiled Misty, "Bye."

"Bye."

Ash hung the phone up and handed it back to Nurse Joy, thanking her profusely.

"Well, come one Pikachu. We'd better get to b—Pikachu? Where'd you go?" called Ash as he searched the dark pokemon center.

"Pika pi!"

Ash followed the sound of his friend and came to a stop in front of one of the windows, where Pikachu was pointing to something off in the distance.

"What is it?" wondered Ash, looking out the window.

"Pika…" it growled as its cheeks sparked up.

Ash continued to look out the window for any signs of life, but saw none. Maybe Pikachu was just seeing things. Besides, it was dark outside and the sound of the lightening might have startled it, but then again, Pikachu was an electric pokemon.

"It's just the lightening Pikachu, nothing to worry about. Now, come on, let's get to bed," yawned Ash as he started to, tiredly, walk up the stairs.

Pikachu reluctantly followed its master, still believing that something was out there. It could sense something odd, different and it knew it wasn't the storm. Pikachu could feel great power from outside the walls of the center, and that kind of power could only be linked to one person…

As Ash readied himself for bed, Pikachu continued to be on high alert. Confident that something was within the darkness of the storm, it stayed near the window, vowing to protect Ash at all costs.

Shrugging off Pikachu's peculiar behavior, Ash sat at the desk in the corner of the room and opened the envelope Nurse Joy had given him earlier. He had almost forgotten about it in all the excitement. He ripped open the seal and smiled as he recognized the neat handwriting of his significant other.

Ash took hold of every word, almost as if Misty had been there herself to read it aloud to him. He read it several times, feeling the warmth from her comforting words and taking in the slight scent that still lingered on the envelope. He loved Misty with all his heart and he couldn't wait until he would be able to hold her in his arms once again. Hopefully, all this talk of Aki and Marissa would pass in time and they'd be able to live normal, happy lives without the distractions of others. He wanted her to always be there for him when he needed her and he had vowed to do the same.

He smiled as he folded the letter back into its envelope. Although Ash had never revealed anything to Misty about a possible future together, he constantly thought of their potential lives together as a married couple. He had wanted to have children with her, grow old with her, and die with her. All the things young men had wished from their significant others but twice the capacity. Ash had planned a possible proposal the following year. He even had a ring picked out and everything, but what held him back was the inevitable answer. He had hoped that his relationship with her wasn't just a fling or something on the side, he knew it was real, he just hoped that she felt the same.

Ash shook his head of the thoughts and tried to focus a little bit on Aki and Marissa, but all he could think of at the moment was Misty. He pulled out a paper and pen from the desk drawer and had decided to write a letter to Misty, in hopes of getting everything off of his chest. He dated the letter and then began to write.

'Dear Misty,

Hey there, sweetie. How are you doing? By the time you receive this, I'll probably be back in your arms again, holding you, and declaring bold declarations of love. Anyway, I couldn't sleep much, so I decided to write to you. I know it probably could have waited until I got home, but I just needed to tell you how much you mean to me. Misty, you are my everything, I'm nothing without you by my side. I feel like I need you in order to continue living my life like I want it. Our future means everything to me and I hope you feel the same. Love makes you do strange things sometimes, but I've never regretted any of it. Women can make even the strongest of men kneel down on one knee…all this because of love. I guess what I'm trying to say is that…guys like me find it hard to take that extra step forward, no matter how hard they want to, they find they can't. We're afraid of rejection because it could mean eternal heartbreak forever. Listen to me ramble on and on about nothing. Well, I guess I'll wrap this up. Remember that I will always be with you, even if I'm not physically there. I will never leave you, I promise. I love you with all my heart.

Love, Ash'

Pleased with himself, Ash sealed the note in an envelope and threw it back on the desk in hopes of sending it the following morning.

"Chosen one…"

Ash's ears perked up as he heard the familiar voice. Pikachu, also hearing the voice, growled at the presence that seemed to be surrounding them. Ash stood up, looking in all directions for a sign of anything.

"Who's there?" whispered Ash.

"Have you already forgotten, chosen one?" said the voice.

"Aki, Marisssa…" Ash growled.

"Pika…"

"What do you two want?" demanded Ash.

"You don't sound too happy to hear from us Ash," smiled Marissa, "By the way, we dropped in on that treasure of yours."

"Pikachu pi!"

"Misty…what do you want with her? Whatever it is, you can settle things with me, but leave her out of it," warned Ash.

"You are in no position to be telling me what to do, young one," said Aki as he tensed up.

"Be warned chosen one, we have much bigger plans for her," smirked Marissa, enjoying Ash's frustration.

"You will not go near her!" yelled Ash.

"We are not the ones that will cause her suffering," replied Marissa coolly.

"What do you mean?"

Ash was confused now. Who else would hurt Misty other than themselves, unless they had an ally, but Ash doubted that.

"Young chosen one, you will make her suffer an unparalleled amount of pain," said Aki, "She will cry day after day, heartbroken. In her dreams, her mind will drift to the one person for whom she cries. She will not be able to move on, or live for that matter."

"She'll be lost, lonely, and afraid of the outside world. She will be able to trust no one. And she will have no one to lean on when a situation arises," finished Marissa.

"You're wrong! She'll have me! I will not leave her!" screamed Ash. Through all his frustration with the two, his fears were continuing to grow. He was now immensely scared for Misty's life, but, furthermore, he was scared about what Aki and Marissa were saying. He would never let Misty suffer, not alone anyway. He would never do anything to bring harm to her, so what exactly were they talking about?

"It seems you've just contradicted yourself, chosen one," laughed Marissa.

Ash growled at them, furious. He clenched his fists, feeling helpless to do anything.

"We shall go into hiding for the time being," started Aki, "When we return, you will have already been out of the picture and there will be nothing to stop us from retrieving what is rightfully ours."

Aki's voice began to fade away little by little. As it seemed everything was back to normal, Ash slammed his fist into the nearby desk, causing the desk to crack under the immense force. He then sat down on the edge of his bed and held his head in his hands. Misty was in danger, he knew it, but he could do nothing to prevent it. Why had he left her by herself? Why didn't he just stay in Pallet? He was putting Misty's life on the line for some stupid tournament and, he knew, he would soon be regretting it.

A/N: I hope that Chapter was at least a little more exciting than the last one. We are coming to the climax here, just wait and see! Anyway, please keep those reviews coming! AAML!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Don't own Pokemon!

A/N: Here's Chapter 6! By the way, in Pikachu language 'Pika pi' means Ash. Just thought I'd share that for future reference. Enjoy!

Chapter 6

Sleep and relaxation was hard to come by for both Ash and Pikachu. Since midnight, Ash had been in a restless frenzy, unable to extinguish the conversation he had had only hours ago with Aki and Marissa. Tossing and turning, he heard voices in his head telling him that he was going to regret his decision for leaving Misty back home.

Finally, giving up on sleep, Ash got up out of bed as the first rays of sunlight shone through his window. The valley before him lit up in a matter of seconds and, before he knew it, the darkness had been completely wiped out.

Pikachu yawned, sensing its master was already up, and hopped atop his shoulder. Giving Ash a pat on the head, as if to wake him from his tireless stare, Pikachu grabbed the letter Ash had written the night before and stuffed it in his pocket.

"Oh, thanks buddy. I'd hate to forget to mail this," he said, pulling the letter out of his pocket. He examined it for a moment and then stuffed it back in his pocket once again.

Skipping breakfast, Ash and Pikachu headed for the mailbox outside of the pokemon center. He directed his vision to the clear, calm sky. The weather had cleared up rather unexpectedly, but, regardless of how quickly it had dissipated, Ash was glad nonetheless. He sealed the envelope with a kiss, threw it in the mailbox, and then gave a quick nod to Pikachu.

"Let's get going Pikachu. We need to make good time, so we won't have too many breaks, okay," he said, taking his first steps out of the small city.

The little mouse pokemon merely nodded and continued to walk side by side with its master without a word. Pikachu could sense the tension and worry in Ash's voice and had decided to keep quiet, knowing its master probably wanted to be left alone with his thoughts.

'Once we get home, we'll figure this out,' thought Ash, 'I'll get Misty back to Pallet, try to find a way to contact Hikara and the others, and then figure out where Aki and Marissa are residing.'

After a good two hours of Ash thinking and organizing his thoughts and ideas, they had finally arrived at the entrance to the rock tunnel. Pikachu awed at the sheer size of the entrance, while Ash gaped, open mouthed. He took in a deep breath and began his descent into the cave, but stopped as he heard a young boy's voice.

"Oh come on you stupid thing!"

Ash and Pikachu simultaneously turned their heads in the direction of the voice and found a boy, about eight years younger than Ash, struggling with what seemed to be a flashlight. Ash, feeling sympathetic for the boy, walked up to him.

Startled, the boy leapt back, flashlight in hand, ready to attack.

"Stand back!" yelled the boy, "Don't come any closer! I have pokemon you don't want to mess with!"

"Calm down," reassured Ash, throwing his arms up, "I'm not going to hurt you, I promise. I just overheard that you were having a slight problem."

The boy, lowering his arms a bit, nodded in response.

"Yeah, my flashlight started dying on me as soon as I was about to enter the cave," he explained, lowering his defenses a bit, realizing that Ash meant no harm.

"Yeah, well, misfortunes like that do tend to happen every once in while," smiled Ash, thinking that the young boy reminded him of himself at that age, "What's your name?"

"Darren, what about you?"

"My name's Ash and this is Pikachu," smiled Ash.

"Pika!" exclaimed the pokemon.

"Whoa, a real live Pikachu! I've never seen one this close before. Is it okay if I pet it?" asked Darren curiously.

"Pikachu?" asked Ash.

Pikachu nodded and stepped up to the young trainer, nuzzling its cheek against his. Darren pet Pikachu behind the ears, causing a very satisfied purr from a very content looking Pikachu.

"You must have studied pokemon a lot if you knew that Pikachus tend to not like being touched by strangers," mused Ash.

Darren nodded knowingly.

"Everyone knows you're not supposed to touch a Pikachu unless they know you or get their permission," smiled the trainer.

At this comment, Ash laughed, along with Pikachu, remembering his first day as a trainer.

Ash snapped himself out of his reverie and remembered his task at hand. He motioned for Pikachu who, in turn, hopped on its master's shoulder.

"Well, if you're heading through the rock tunnel me and Pikachu would be glad to accompany you. It would be nice to have the company anyway," smiled Ash.

"You have a spare flashlight?" asked the boy.

"I guess you could call it that," shrugged Ash, unsnapping one of his pokeballs from his belt. He threw the ball up in the air and a bright white flash engulfed the area. As soon as the flash appeared, it vanished with nothing but a small mouse looking pokemon with a flame on its back.

"Wow, a Cyndaquil!" squealed the boy

"Cynda cyndaquil!" exclaimed the pokemon.

"Well, shall we be off?" asked Ash.

"Yeah, let's get going!"

They stepped into the cave, but not without Ash turning and looking over the horizon. Hoping he would make it out of the cave safe and sound, he approached the then took his first steps into the darkness.

The first half hour or so went by pretty quickly. Cyndaquil had started to get tired and Ash, secretly praising himself for switching Kingler with Charizard at the last pokemon center, brought the large lizard pokemon out for a stretch. Darren gaped at Charizard's size and was even allowed by Charizard itself to ride atop its shoulders.

"So, where did you say you were headed Darren?" asked Ash.

"I'm heading towards Pewter City to try and win a Boulder Badge and start my journey," he explained.

"Pewter City, huh?" smiled Ash, thinking about Brock, "The gym leader is a good friend of mine actually."

"Really!" gaped Darren enthusiastically.

"Yeah, we've known each other for years," sighed Ash, recounting his memories with the rock trainer.

"After I win his badge, I plan on going to Cerulean City for a go at the Cascade Badge," stated Darren, "Don't suppose you know the gym leader there do you?" he asked sarcastically.

Pikachu laughed aloud as Ash gave off a warm smile.

"Maybe I do," he smiled.

"Are you serious?" gasped Darren in disbelief.

"Yup, she's very beautiful and--"

"Oh, I don't care about that stuff. I just want her badge," commented Darren.

"You'll care soon enough," muttered Ash, remembering his first reaction to the mention of beautiful girls, "We're actually quite close."

Ash pulled off his treasured bracelet that Misty had given him only days before, and showed it to Darren.

"What's this?" he asked curiously, taking the piece of jewelry.

He carefully read the inscription and broke out into a laugh.

"Oh, when you said you were close friends, you really meant it," noted Darren snidely.

Ash just laughed at the young boy, retrieved his bracelet, and stuffed it back in his jacket pocket.

Another hour flew by as Ash and Darren continued on through the cave. Charizard's stamina, Ash noticed, had improved, causing him to last much longer than Cyndaquil.

All of a sudden, sensing something out of place, Charizard stopped in its tracks.

"What's up Charizard?" asked Ash, gazing at the trail ahead of them.

It merely growled at the darkness and set Darren on the ground.

"What's going on?" asked a scared Darren.

"I don't know, I'm sure everything's--"

Cut off by a sudden rumbling sound, Ash looked in all directions. Suddenly, rocks started falling in every direction, causing Ash to jump back in surprise.

"Damn it! Let's get out of here!" yelled Ash as he, Pikachu, Charizard, and Darren headed in the direction they hoped was the exit.

Ash felt himself dodging rock after rock, keeping himself a good distance away from the crumbling rock on the walls. He kept looking back every once in while to make sure Darren was still with him until he heard a piercing scream. Ash whipped his head back and saw Darren on the ground, crushed by a rock twice his size.

"Darren!" Ash yelled as he attempted to remove the rock, "You'll be okay, we'll get you out of here!"

Charizard and Pikachu ran to Ash's aid in an attempt to remove the large rock from the boy. He had scratches on his face and a large gash on his forehead that was dripping with blood. He had tears in his eyes, scared of what would happen.

"Ash…I-I'm scared…am I going to die…" he asked shakily.

"No! You won't die! You still need to get those gym badges, remember?" Ash weakly smiled, receiving a light giggle from Darren, "I'm going to get you out of here, just trust me," he pressed, feeling the rock start to move under all the pressure.

'I can't let this kid die here, it's not his time. He's still much too young,' Ash thought, mustering all his strength in one final attempt to remove the boulder, 'This must have been a trap set by Aki! I should have known better than to leave Pallet!'

With one final heave, Ash, Pikachu, and Charizard pushed the rock to the side, panting heavily. Charizard, although tired in its efforts, continued to protect its master from any falling rocks that threatened to come near. Ash looked down at the young boy and saw nothing but a pool of sticky red blood. Ash took off his jacket and wrapped it around the young boy, stopping the blood from spilling further.

"What's going to happen to me?" asked the young boy.

"I'm getting you out of here," said Ash confidently as he whistled for Charizard.

The massive lizard pokemon responded by flying over to where its master was and growled.

"Charizard, I need you to get Darren out of here right away!" he screamed.

Charizard simply stared at its master and shook its head defiantly. It had no intention of leaving Ash behind.

"That's an order Charizard!" he commanded, handing Charizard Darren's mangled body, "Listen, he doesn't have much time! Me and Pikachu will be fine, just go!"

Reluctantly, Charizard lifted off of the ground and sped off in the direction they had originally come from. Now in total darkness, Ash brought out Cyndaquil, who completely realized the situation and headed them in the opposite direction in which Charizard had gone.

"You have to keep going strong for me Cyndaquil!" commanded Ash desperately, noticing that the pokemon was beginning to tire out.

The pokemon nodded and continued its pace in search of the exit when, all of a sudden…Ash had turned around…but it was too late…

"Pika pi..."

Back in Cerulean City Misty sat in her kitchen, eating lunch with her sisters, watching the water pokemon play in the nearby gym area. They splashed around contentedly, racing each other around the pool. Misty smiled at their antics, able to finally relax a bit knowing that Ash was on his way home.

'Ash should be on his way back--'

Misty's glass of water fell to the floor, shattering and spilling its contents. Her thoughts had been interrupted abruptly by a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Unable to grasp what was really happening, Daisy bent over to wipe the mess up.

"Mist, we aren't five years old anymore. Be careful or we're going to…Misty?" inquired Daisy, immediately stopping what she was doing and staring at the vacant look on her younger sister's face, "Misty, what's wrong?"

By this time Violet and Lily had also noticed the blank expression on their sister's face. Misty had instantly paled, her hands were shaking, and small drops of sweat had started to make its way down her delicate face.

"Misty?" asked Lily cautiously.

"Ash…"

"What about Ash?" questioned Violet, looking at her sister.

"I-I don't know…but something's not right," she stuttered, standing from her seat.

Misty's sisters exchanged worried glances at one another, not really knowing what to say.

"What do you mean?" asked Violet.

Instead of answering her, Misty paced throughout the kitchen, unsure of what this sudden feeling of despair was. Then, she made her way into the living room, followed by her sisters, and noticed that the television had been left on and the news reporter's voice was blaring. The reporter was standing in front of what seemed to be a greatly damaged cave entrance, as, Misty noticed, various rocks were scattered about. Police officers, ambulances, paramedics, firemen, other news reporters from other stations, and local onlookers vacated the scene that seemed to catch Misty's attention. Daisy, Lily, and Violet turned their attention to the screen in which Misty turned up the volume.

"If you're just joining us, we're here live at the rock tunnel located West of the Kanto region," the reporter started, "It's reported that approximately 1:30 today rocks had begun to loosen in the nearly ten year old tunnel. The tunnel had originally been made as an alternative route back to Pallet, Cerulean, and Pewter, but now, all chaos has broken loose."

Misty's hands had started to get sweaty and she found she could no longer speak. Hadn't that been the same tunnel Ash and Pikachu were planning on traveling through today? Wasn't it that same route that would lead him back to Pallet? Misty stood on edge as she waited for the reporter to continue.

"The rock slide is said to have claimed the lives of 14 trainers, while five remain in critical condition and have been transported to the nearest medical center. It is said that a couple of dozen of people still remain trapped inside. Various people are out here, hard at work, trying desperately to recover the bodies that may still remain inside," the reporter sighed deeply, "Tragedy certainly has struck as rescue workers are continuing to tend to the injured and the search for survivors continues in this live report. As you can see from the scene," he pointed at the entrance of the cave where several Rhydon were being used as drill workers, "The rescue team is hard at work to recover anyone who may still be alive and we are all definitely keeping out fingers crossed. We have a list of names here whom we believe to be missing or have yet to be recovered. Parents, we strongly urge you to usher you're children out of the room for the moment as it may seem devastating if a loved one is listed. This list of names is thanks to the Pokemon Center database."

Daisy put a hand on Misty's shoulder as she prepared herself for the worst. The list of names had begun at the top of the screen and scrolled downward.

'Adam Lee (15), Theresa Garcia (10), Aaron Gray (22), Jacob Keller (20), Tammy Parker (16), Eric Nishimura (18), Samantha Carver (18), Ashton Ketchum (18)…'

"No…" Misty cried, "No…"

Her eyes had started to fill with tears, unable to believe what she was seeing. All the while, Misty's sisters were in total shock, speechless and not being able to fully comprehend the situation.

"Oh my goodness…" gasped Daisy.

"Misty…" Violet started, unable to finish.

"No! I-I refuse to believe it! Ash is alive! I know he is! H-He has to be…" sobbed Misty as Daisy gathered her weeping sister into her arms, "The reporter said that they were just missing people…there's still some chance that…"

Daisy cradled Misty in her arms, shaking her head sympathetically. Why did this have to happen to Ash? He was one of the nicest guys she had ever known and her younger sister was madly in love with him to top it off. It just wasn't right.

All of a sudden, Misty tore away from her sister's grasp and ran up the stairs, wiping at her tears.

"Misty wait!" called Lily.

"Let her go," said Daisy, "She needs some time to herself. This is kind of devastating to all of us right now, but most of all, Misty. Let's give her some space."

Both Lily and Violet nodded simultaneously in response to their oldest sister. Merely staring at the staircase, they shook their heads in grief and sympathy for their youngest sister.

Misty slammed the door to her room behind her and landed, face down, on her pillow. Her cries were muffled, but heard nonetheless as Togepi came out from hiding.

"Choki priii!"

"Ash…you promised me…you promised me you'd be okay, that you'd come back to me," she whispered, continuing to cry into her pillow and grasping her treasured locket.

"Promises do tend to be broken," came a familiar voice.

Misty's head shot up, recognizing the voice instantly.

"You…" Misty growled, unable to contain her rage and frustration.

"Why did you not heed our warning?" laughed Marissa.

Misty had then come to the sudden realization that this was all a set up, a trap set by Aki and Marissa…and Ash and had fallen right into it.

"You…it was all you…" breathed Misty.

"Can you really put all the blame on us and not yourself?" asked Aki.

"I would never do anything to hurt Ash!" she screamed.

"Encouraging him to compete in that tournament sent him to his untimely death…just think about it…" urged Marissa as their voices faded away.

Misty gave out a sudden gasp.

'Oh my god…she's right. If I didn't tell him to compete, he'd still be here with me. If I didn't tell him that the tournament would improve his skills, he wouldn't have gone. It's all me… it's all my fault…" she cried.

Standing up, tears streaming down her cheeks, Misty got her backpack together, a water bottle, a couple of changes of clothes, some money for food, and her pokeballs before heading out of her window, leaving a confused Togepi behind. She kissed it before descending down the ladder in her back yard.

'I'm sorry Togepi, but you're too young to understand what's going on and it wouldn't be fair of me to take you along,' Misty thought.

Rain was pouring down in buckets as Misty zipped her raincoat up to her chin and threw her hood on. She had to know for sure. Was Ash really gone or was he just waiting in the midst of the cave to be rescued? Misty didn't know and it was killing her inside. She continued to walk through the afternoon rain, however, her mind focusing on one thing and one thing only.

A/N: A little more suspenseful right? Anyway, I hoped you liked it! Please review! Thanks!


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Don't own Pokemon!

A/N: I honestly think its been about a year since I have updated anything. Sorry about that guys, but I've been so enthralled with school and have found a new love in computer games, lol! Also, I have somewhat lost an interest in Pokemon, seeing as I don't watch the series anymore. Anyway, I hope I still have some loyal fans, even if a just a few, I still appreciate the reviews and kind words. Enjoy!

Chapter 7

Angry storm clouds filled the evening sky, causing the horizon to become a mere illusion. The rain above pounded the ground with the force of a thousand men, merciless to those below. The thunder and lightening blasted and flashed every few seconds, illuminating the surrounding areas for but a few moments before quickly dissipating into the night, waiting to strike yet again.

No lights were lit on the dim street nor was anyone risking being out on a night such as this. And yet, one figure continued to trudge the streets, unaffected by the affects the sudden storm had to offer. The figure moved carefully yet swiftly through the road, the only protection from the rain being a hooded jacket that seemed to gain more and more water as time passed.

Misty hadn't stopped walking all night, the events of the past couple of hours still reverberating within her very being. She had gotten off of the train that made a brief stop closest to the tunnel the day before and had been walking nonstop ever since. She simply could not come to terms with what had transpired and felt it too unreal for anyone, save herself, to believe. This overload upon her brain is what made her ignore her fatigue and continue to travel the road to the rock tunnel…the tunnel where…

Misty shook her head of such thoughts and continued to walk, focusing on one thing and one thing only; the end of her destination. She did not know how long she had been walking, a few hours maybe, probably even more than that, but none of that mattered to her. She only cared about reaching her final destination and finding the truth.

Misty pulled her coat tightly around her body, trying desperately to block out the harsh winds that whipped at her already soaked frame. Her jacket did nothing to warm her, but she continued to hold tight to the fact that she could not stop, not for anything. She felt her life hanging in the balance, knowing that the information that she would receive sooner or later would be to her disliking, but she had to know the truth…she needed proof, evidence that Ash was really…

Frustrated with herself and her weaknesses, Misty violently shook her head in a failed attempt to rid her mind of these thoughts, thoughts that had made her cry and long to see Ash just one last time. She envisioned Aki and Marissa laughing at her for her foolishness and ignorance, and it made her stomach turn in disgust, knowing that they had planned it from the beginning, only using her persuasive nature to lure Ash into their trap.

Upon passing the last town before her destination, she came across a hill that overlooked the whole valley. In the distance, she saw artificial lights and many tiny figures running about in the dim light doing who knows what. She saw the lights of sirens and even heard a few go off into the distance before fading away, only to be masked by the sound of the rumbling thunder. Walking down the hill, each step brought her closer to knowing the truth. But did she really want to know the answer to her questions? Of course she did! What if Ash had been rescued only minutes after the broadcast that she had witnessed on T.V. and was waiting for her at the entrance to the rock tunnel? Maybe he was answering Officer Jenny's questions as to what might have triggered the sudden rock slide and he just sustained minor injuries, however…

Misty shivered, not from the cold, but from the alternative to her story. What if Ash hadn't been found and was still trapped inside? No, she could not think like that…but, despite herself, she had felt the tears start to form out of the corners of her eyes and, because of this sudden fear, she clutched the locket Ash had given her only a couple of days ago.

'Ash…why you, why did this have to happen to you…to us?' she thought, nearing the site of the rock slide.

Suddenly, she felt the need to just stop in her tracks. She stared at the ground, not wanting to continue for fear of what she would discover. However, she knew she could not stop, even for Ash's sake, knowing that it would not have been fair to him to give up so easily. Taking in a sharp breath of air, Misty quickened her pace and reached the site within mere minutes, horrified at the image before her. Never before had she seen so many people in such a frenzied state.

She slowly sifted her way through the crowd, looking for anyone who would be able to answer her questions. Off to the side, Misty noticed several worn looking men lifting body bags into the back of an ambulance and cringed at the thought of so many lost lives. Refusing to look down at the remaining bags, for fear of what she might find, she headed for the nearest officer.

"Um…excuse me?" Misty interrupted nervously. The officer shot her head up, obviously drowned in the words on her clipboard, not realizing that Misty was standing in front of her.

"I'm sorry miss, this area is off limits. If you want a full report, you're going to have to come back in the morning. As you can see--"

"No, I'm not a reporter Officer Jenny, I just need to talk to you," interrupted Misty.

Officer Jenny merely stared at her, making Misty feel extremely uncomfortable. After a few moments of silence, it seemed as if a light went off in the officer's head and she perked up.

"Misty! My god, what are you doing here? I almost didn't recognize you in the dimness of the light," exclaimed Jenny as she led Misty to a tented area, off limits to the rest of the public. Jenny handed Misty a steaming hot cup of coffee, warm blanket, and a seat by the heater with which they had installed.

"Thank you Jenny," Misty smiled graciously, taking a long sip of the hot liquid, letting it warm her whole body.

Jenny sat in quiet patience as she waited for Misty to become comfortable before asking her why she had come.

"Misty, why are you here?" Jenny repeated, crossing her arms in front of her to block out the cold air that had found its way into the tent.

Upon hearing Jenny's question, Misty focused her vision opposite the tent where some tools had been laid. She saw as papers were scattered about, papers that probably held the victim's names.

"Misty?" Jenny repeated, not sure whether or not Misty had heard.

"Jenny…" she could not continue without breaking down in silent tears, "Jenny, Ash was in that tunnel…and I haven't heard anything from him since the cave in."

Jenny put her hand over her mouth as if to conceal her shock. She did not know what to say. So many bodies had been retrieved from the cave, but none that even resembled Ash, not that she had been looking for someone she recognized.

"Come with me," she urged, suddenly getting up out of her seat and leading Misty outside once more. Jenny grabbed her clipboard before exiting the tent and into the harsh winds. She began speaking to another one of the officers on duty before turning back to Misty once more, a solemn look on her face.

"Misty, I'm sorry, but he hasn't been found yet," sighed Jenny.

Misty's face fell, still clinging to the tiny bit of hope that Ash was okay, that he was still alive.

"Oh…I see, well thank you Officer Jen--"

"Officer Jenny!" a voice interrupted, causing both women to turn, "We have a live one here!"

Both Jenny and Misty rushed in the direction of the second officer, Misty hoping upon hope that it was Ash.

"Get a medic here over here ASAP!" screamed Jenny as she surveyed the scene, "Hurry! Get this kid out of the rain!"

Several medics rushed to the scene and laid the patient inside one of the tents, followed by Officer Jenny.

"How did you find him?" asked Jenny, grabbing several bottles from off of the countertop.

"That Charizard over there rescued him," answered the second officer.

'Charizard!' thought Misty, turning towards the cave in which she saw a large retreating figure dash out of site.

"Charizard!" Misty yelled into the tunnel, but it was no use. Her voice had been drowned out by the rains and the noise of all the workers running about. The large pokemon had retreated yet again into the tunnel, the flame on its tail becoming dimmer and dimmer the deeper it went. Misty was sure that it was Ash's charizard, everything about it seemed to give off a confident aura, an attribute that Misty had come to recognize in all of Ash's pokemon.

'Charizard, is Ash okay?' Misty silently asked, watching the flame on its tail quickly disappear into the tunnel.

"Get a stretcher over here stat!"

Upon hearing Jenny's booming voice, Misty shook her head and rushed to where Jenny was and peeked over her shoulder at the patient. It was a young boy, about 10 years old, who was bleeding profusely from an open wound in his abdomen. Misty gasped at the site, surprised that the boy had made it out alive.

"He-He saved me…save him…please," the boy kept mumbling, "He-He's g-going to die if you don't do something."

Jenny just nodded helping the medics tend to his wounds, "It'll be okay, you're going to be just fine."

Jenny sighed and removed the jacket that had been keeping the blood from spilling out. She threw it to the side, a few blood drops spilling over the side of the table next to Misty's legs.

Suddenly, Misty's heart stopped as she stared at the jacket in front of her. It just couldn't be…there had to be some kind of a coincidence.

"Get him out of here and to the nearest hospital!" yelled Jenny.

The medics nodded and had begun to wheel him out of the tent when the young boy held his hand out to Misty.

"W-Wait…" he said weakly, "Y-You…you're the Cerulean City gym leader."

It was more of a statement than it was a question, but Misty, scared, nodded nonetheless. This boy knew something of Ash, she could feel it…he knew something she didn't.

"I met him…I met Ash…he was the one that saved me…told me to get out with his pokemon while he stayed behind…"

Misty brought a hand up to her mouth, feeling the tears starting to trickle down her face. The reality of the situation was finally starting to hit Misty, as if someone had come up to her and slapped her across the face. She couldn't process what was going on, but she knew the news wouldn't be good and the little hope that she had been clinging onto was slowly dissipating as the minutes drew on.

"Is…Is Ash okay?" cried Misty, walking closer to the young boy.

The boy just shook his head and solemnly looked to the ground, "I turned back to look and saw…something falling on him…and then I couldn't hear him anymore and everything went dark."

Misty swallowed down the lump that had formed in her throat and no longer wished to fight back the tears. Falling to her knees, she finally broke down, letting all her emotions over the past couple of hours come out. Never in her life had she felt so alone in the world. She felt as if time had stopped for her and that she would never be happy again. Ash was still alive…he just had to be. He had promised her that he would come out of this okay…and ready to greet her with open arms when he arrived back at Pallet. He just couldn't be…no! She just would not accept that as a plausible answer nor would she subject herself to believing Ash was gone.

"Okay, get him out of here! Let's move people!" sighed Jenny, urging the medics and other officers to move quickly realizing that the situation had just taken a turn for the worst.

"He loves you," whispered the boy before being wheeled out of the area, continuing to reach out his hand to Misty in an attempt to touch her and maybe even console her.

Misty shot her head up as she heard those words and watched as the boy was swiftly exited out of the tent, holding his hand out to her. Officer Jenny helped Misty to her feet and sat her down on a chair, holding her head in her hands.

"Misty, I don't know what to say," said Jenny, who had looked over at the blank stare in Misty's eyes. Her eyes, Jenny noted, seemed to have lost all their sparkle and their lust for life. She shook her head as she took hold of Ash's jacket and walked over to the sink in an attempt to wash it. All of a sudden, both Misty and Jenny heard a light clank and stopped to look at the ground. A shiny silver object had fallen out of the pocket of Ash's jacket and lay before Misty. Jenny picked up the object and examined it before smiling sadly to herself.

Misty stood from where she had been sitting, silent tears still trailing down her face. She took hold of the object, causing even more tears to fall as she realized what it was.

"Ash…" she whispered to no one but herself. It was the bracelet she had given him only a couple of days ago…the precious bracelet that he had been wearing upon their departure, but what had it been doing in his pocket? Whatever the case, it just made Misty cry even harder to think that Ash may have…

'All I want to hear is that you'll love me until however long we're together…until fate separates us.'

Misty remembered Ash saying those very words to her the day before his departure. Fate had separated them and Misty, still crying her heart out, understood that it was not in the cards. Perhaps she was not meant to be happy, maybe she simply was not special enough to have a life filled with true happiness…because the happiness that she had once possessed, had disappeared as quickly as fate had intervened. She had been dealt the losing hand, and her punishment was losing Ash forever.

'If anything was to happen to me, and I mean anything, I want you to continue living.'

Damn you Ash! At the time she did not know what he had meant, but, thinking back, it seemed as if he had predicted something would happen to tear them apart.

"Damn it Ash!" sobbed Misty, pounding her fist on the metal table to her side, causing Jenny to jump at her sudden outburst, "Why did you always have to tempt fate the way you did? Why couldn't you just let things go…just let things be?" she paused, bringing a slight smile to her face, "Because, you care about others more than you do yourself…and because you loved me."

Misty stared at the bracelet in her hands, wet from the rain. She squeezed it in the palm of her hand, letting her emotions run their course throughout her body. She could almost feel the warmth emanating from his precious gift, and that gave her the incentive to walk out into the rain towards the tunnel.

"Misty wait!" called Jenny, running after her, but stopped when she noticed Misty staring into the depths of the cave.

"There's still a chance, isn't there Jenny? There's still some hope that Ash is alive right? Please tell me there's still hope…" she whispered hoarsely, never breaking her gaze away from the entrance to the tunnel.

Officer Jenny sighed, knowing in her mind that survival was very unlikely, even for Ash, who seemed to dodge even the greatest of dangers in the past. This time things were different. Any number of things could have happened to him while inside the rock tunnel. He could have been crushed to death, like the young boy had claimed, or he could have been fatally wounded and bled to death. Even if he had survived after the coming of the collapse, there was still the possibility that he could suffocate within the cave because of a lack of air circulation.

Jenny looked towards Misty out of the corner of her eye and then drew her eyes toward the ground. Sensing Officer Jenny's uncertainty, Misty felt her legs give way as she stared into the depths of the tunnel, silent tears streaming down her delicate face.

'You've won Aki…you've taken Ash away from me…and I was useless to stop it!' thought Misty as she pounded her fists into the soggy ground. Her love was gone, evil had prevailed, and she knew that they would be back to take her life as well. But this time around, Misty could care less about the outcome…even if it meant subjecting herself to unknown dangers that she knew would soon come…

Several miles ahead, on the other side of the rock tunnel…

"Honey, he needs medical help!" announced a middle aged man.

"Yes, of course. Quick, bring the boy inside and I'll see what I can do," replied a second voice, apparently the man's wife, "It doesn't look good, but I'll see what I can do…poor thing."

"Pi…ka…"

The woman whipped her head around and saw a critically injured Pikachu a few meters away from the boy's mangled body. She picked up its small body and proceeded to take it into the house to treat it with her husband.

The middle aged man rushed the critically injured individual into the house and placed his fragile frame upon one of the beds in the guest room. Pulling a medic bag from the closet, the man's wife began to stitch up his wounds, stop the bleeding, and apply the required amounts of medicine to reduce the risk of infection. Though she had tried her best to treat his wounds, she was doubtful he'd make it through the night.

Stirring slightly from his state of unconsciousness, the young trainer reached his hand out weakly to an invisible figure in his mind, trying desperately to reach her.

"Misty…"

A/N: Well that concludes this story! Look out for the sequel later on. I hope ya liked it! I actually just finished this chapter, even though I started it like last year. I kind of want to get back into writing again. Please review thanks!


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